"The government has decided to act in a more pre-emptive manner in response to the heightened macroeconomic uncertainties, " said Choi Sang-mok, director general at the ministry.
Friday's move came after North Korea recently threatened a pre-emptive nuclear attack on South Korea and the United States in response to stepped-up U.N.
The reasoning is that Washington will not launch a pre-emptive strike if North Korea has a good chance of getting off an immediate and devastating response of its own.