ROK Defense Ministry Says Deployment of THAAD Will Help National Security

If the North Koreans move forward their rocket test this would give Seoul additional political cover to move forward with the deployment of THAAD to Korea which the Chinese have been against.  If seems that if the Chinese are so concerned about the deployment of THAAD they should do more to control their North Korean allies:

Deployment of the United States’ advanced missile defense system, the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, in South Korea will be helpful in defending the country from North Korean threats, but the country has no plans to announce any decision on the matter in the near future, a defense official said Friday.

“Our government will consider every measure to prepare against North Korea’s missile threats,” the Defense Ministry spokesman Kim Min-seok said.

“If U.S. Forces Korea deploys THAAD, it will help our national security and defense,” Kim said.

The official government stance signals the U.S. move to deploy the THAAD system inside the USFK is gaining momentum in South Korea.

It also marks a step forward from the country’s more cautious stance in the past that South Korea will weigh the THAAD issue in accordance with national security interests.

Earlier in the day, the U.S.-based Wall Street Journal reported the U.S. could announce next week or so that the two countries are in negotiations over the THAAD system.  [Yonhap]

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