China Complains to ROK Ambassador About THAAD Deployment Discussions
The Chinese government is upset about the talks between the US and South Korea to deploy the THAAD missile defense system to the ROK and their complaints when looked at objectively pretty much justifies the deployment of THAAD to Korea:
China summoned South Korean Ambassador Kim Jang-soo to protest against Seoul and Washington’s agreement to begin talks on deploying a U.S. Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery in South Korea..
Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin called in the ambassador Sunday to protest.
It is the first time the Chinese government has called in Kim, a former defense minister, who assumed the post last March.
Earlier, the Chinese foreign ministry had expressed “deep concern,” about the THAAD discussions.
Hours after the North Korean rocket launch Sunday, South Korea and the U.S. said they would begin talks on deploying the THAAD battery. The launch is widely viewed as a covert ballistic missile test to develop delivery vehicles capable of carrying nuclear warheads.
“China’s position on the issue of anti-missile is consistent and clear,” the Chinese foreign ministry said in a faxed statement, Yonhap News Agency reported. [Korea Times]
You can read more at the link, but here is the part of their complaint when looked at objectively pretty much justifies deploying THAAD to Korea:
“Countries, when pursuing their own security, should take into account others’ security interests as well as regional peace and stability.”
The Chinese should heed their own advice because their actions to allow the Kim regime to continuously destabilize regional security and threaten the security interests of South Korea is why THAAD looks like it will be deployed to Korea in the first place.
I wonder why the Chinese are so upset about a potential THAAD deployment. It seems like an overreaction to summon the ROK ambassador for a formal complaint. THAAD shouldn’t have a military impact on China; this system is defensive and there already is an X-band radar deployed in Japan. Are the Chinese upset that THAAD might counter Chinese ballistic missile attacks on US facilities in Korea?
Perhaps a second X-band radar is part of the proposal. Although a second X-band might not provide much additional information, the second radar site could complicate Chinese war plans. In the event that Japan and the US were in a fight with China with the ROK remaining neutral, China might not risk striking the Korean X-band site.
The Chinese strategic or tactical motives are not apparent to me. Maybe they are just being arrogant and want to boss their neighbors around.
@long-time lurker, the THAAD radar to be used against North Korea has to have its radar pointed towards North Korea. The Chinese will easily be able to tell the systems orientation through satellite imagery. The system is clearly intended to be used against NK not China. China is just trying to drive a wedge between the US and the ROK by trying to stop the THAAD deployment. With this NK provocation the ROK has political cover to deploy the THAAD now. The ROK gave China every opportunity to reign in the North Koreans nuclear and missile programs directed at them and they did nothing.