US Secretary of the Army Eric Fanning and Missile Defense Agency Director Vice Admiral James D. Syring have also visited Korea to stress that the THAAD is fully capable of intercepting an incoming missile and poses no problems to human health or the environment.
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The indictments come amid heightened tensions between Seoul and Pyongyang after a series of missile launches by the North this year and the decision by the United States to place a sophisticated anti-missile system in South Korea.
The South Korean president said North Korea will continue to face economic hardship and worldwide isolation until it agrees to give up its nuclear program.
China and South Korea might undergo a brief period of “cold war” over the THAAD deployment, but it is unlikely that it will fundamentally affect the strategic framework in East Asia, especially because both of them are facing imminent nuclear threats from North Korea. On the other hand, the USA says THAAD’s objective to destroy North Korean missiles.
“THAAD should not be deployed at all, not just in Seongju, but anywhere in South Korea”, said Yoo Ji-won, a 63-year-old melon farmer.
The US government’s increasing weapon deployments near Chinese territories marks an escalation of a “dangerous” arms race with China as the two countries are engaged in a “geopolitical rivalry”, says Keith Preston, a political analyst in Virginia. China also appears to be withholding support at the United Nations for condemnations of North Korea’s missile programs.
He explains that THAAD battery will consist of an anti-missile radar, six launchers, 48 interceptor missiles, a control room and a power generator. Because the system comes with a powerful radar, residents are anxious about electromagnetic radiation, but Seoul and Washington claim there is no risk.
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“THAAD is a self-defensive measure we’ve made a decision to deploy to protect the lives of our people from North Korea’s reckless provocations”, South Korean president Park Geun-hye said in a speech on Monday. “This will enable the Pentagon to adjust its missiles to countering a hypothetical Chinese threat”, Zolotaryov said. “Obviously, they are meant for Russian Federation”. The spokesperson resolutely argued that South Korea’s words and deeds are intentionally created to harm North Korea, a country where “the dreams and ideals of the people are coming true on the people-first principle”, according to KCNA.
