No 'reward' for N Korea, US vows

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il remains defiant North Korea's recent actions were "extraordinarily provocative" and the US does not mean to "reward" them, President Barack Obama has said. Mr Obama was referring to North Korea's latest nuclear and missile tests. "We are going to take a very hard look at how we move forward on these issues," he said. The UN Security Council is discussing tightening sanctions against Pyongyang, which is believed to be planning a long-range missile test this month. It is believed that the Council, which includes the North's closest allies China and Russia, is discussing a draft resolution calling on UN members to immediately comply with sanctions imposed in 2006 after North Korea's first nuclear test. Those include an arms embargo on heavy weapons, ship searches for illegal weapons and a ban on luxury goods. 'Unimaginable punishment' Speaking in France, where he was attending events marking the anniversary of the D-Day, Mr Obama said the US preferred to take the diplomatic approach in dealings with Pyongyang but the North Koreans must respond in what he called "a serious way". South Korea's president visited his air force HQ on Saturday "I don't think that there should be an assumption that we will simply continue down a path in which North Korea is constantly destabilising the region and we just react in the same ways," he told reporters after meeting French President Nicolas Sarkozy in the city of Caen. "We are not intending to continue a policy of rewarding provocation." North Korea raised regional tension last month by conducting the nuclear test, firing short-range missiles and issuing threats to its neighbour, South Korea. On Saturday, South Korean President Lee Myung-bak said his country's defences were strong and there was "no reason to fear". "There should be no doubt that there will be no compromise against things that threaten our people and security," he declared in an address to mark the South's Memorial Day. North Korea's state news agency issued a new warning of "strong action" against the South, blaming it for increasing military tension. It said South Korea "should not make any reckless move" as "anyone making provocation will be met with strong action and unimaginable punishment".