| Title | U.S. Begins Installing Missile Defense System in South Korea | |
| Date | Thursday April 27 2017, @06:38PM | |
| Author | ||
| Topic | ||
| from the poking-the-madman-up-north dept. | ||
The U.S. has begun the installation of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense missiles system:
The US military has started installing a controversial missile defence system at a site in South Korea, amid high tensions over neighbouring North Korea's nuclear and missile ambitions. The Thaad system is designed to protect against threats from North Korea.
Hundreds of local residents protested against the deployment, as vehicles carrying equipment arrived at the site in the south of the country. China argues Thaad will destabilise security in the region. The US has in recent days deployed warships and a submarine to the Korean peninsula, amid fears North Korea could be planning further missile or nuclear tests.
Admiral Harry Harris said that the THAAD system would bring Kim Jong-un "to his senses, not to his knees".
FireEye recently claimed that China is attempting to hack South Korean targets to delay the deployment of THAAD.
Reuters reports that the United States has transported components of the THAAD anti-missile system to the site chosen for it in South Korea, amid protests:
[...] and was denounced by the frontrunner in South Korea's presidential election on May 9.
A spokesman for Moon Jae-in said the decision "ignored public opinion and due process" and demanded the deployment be suspended until the next administration was in place and had made its policy decision.
China has expressed opposition to deployment of the system. AFP via Yahoo! reports that:
The South's tourist industry has been hammered by Beijing's boycott over THAAD, with Chinese visitor numbers -- normally more than half the total -- plummeting 40 percent last month even though the ban only came into force on March 15.
Retail conglomerate Lotte -- which provided the Seongju golf course site to the Seoul government -- has also been targeted, with 85 of its 99 stores in China shut down.
Additional coverage:
Previous stories:
International Relations Strained over S. Korean Anti-missile Plans
G20 Summit Roundup
South Korea to Receive U.S. Anti-Missile Interceptor System
Original Submission #1 Original Submission #2 Original Submission #3
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printed from SoylentNews, U.S. Begins Installing Missile Defense System in South Korea on 2024-04-25 15:33:32