Lee rallies troops on front line of foot-and-mouth fight

President Lee Myung-bak handing a hand-warmer to a quarantine worker during a visit to Hoengseong, Gangwon, yesterday, to inspect the country’s efforts to fight foot-and-mouth disease. Lee visited the area, famous for its high quality hanwoo beef, to cheer the civil servants working to contain the deadly livestock disease in the intense cold, the Blue House said. During a meeting with local officials, Lee expressed appreciation for the civil servants’ efforts and instructed them to continue their operations to stem the disease ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays next month.

“Many of you who are participating in the culling of the animals are doing such a difficult job,” Lee said. “It is not something you can do unless you have a strong sense of duty.” During his visit, Lee had local beef soup for his lunch. By Cho Mun-gyu