his resignation after he was criticized for leading a response to the incident considered too passive by members of both the ruling and opposition political parties. The North Korean news agency KCNA released a Korean People's Army communique stating that North Korea responded after the South had made a "reckless military provocation" by firing dozens of shells into North Korean territorial waters around Yeonpyeong Island from 13:00, as part of "war maneuvers". It warned that "should the South Korean puppet group dare intrude into the territorial waters of the DPRK even 0.001 mm, the revolutionary armed forces of the DPRK will unhesitatingly continue taking merciless military counter-actions against it." The South Korean Deputy Minister of Defense acknowledged that South Korean artillery units had been carrying out live-fire exercises, but denied that the shots had crossed into the North Korean sea area. Four days after the shelling, North Korea's KCNA said about the death of civilians that, "[i]f that is true, it is very regrettable, [...] [b]ut the enemy should be held responsible for the incident as it took such inhuman action as creating 'a human shield' by deploying civilians around artillery positions and inside military facilities." The North Korean attack had a global impact on the financial markets. Several Asian currencies weakened against the euro and U.S. dollar, while at the same time Asian stock markets declined. The impact of the shelling on the financial industry led South Korea's central bank, the Bank of Korea, to hold an emergency meeting to assess the impact of the fighting on the markets. Military responses President Lee instructed the South Korean military to strike North Korea's missile base near its coastal artillery positions if there were an indication of further provocation. Lee Hong-gi of the JCS told the media that the attack had been a "premeditated, intentional illegal violation of the U.N. Convention, the Armistice Agreement and the inter-Korean non-aggression accord. It is also an inhumane atrocity, in which [North Korea] indiscriminately fired shells into unarmed civilian residential areas." He said that the military had "strengthened our surveillance and monitoring to keep watch on North Korean military activities through close cooperation with the United States. We are closely cooperating to draw up joint response directions." On 24 November, the US aircraft carrier departed for joint exercises in the Yellow Sea with the Republic of Korea Navy, in part to deter further North Korean