China Continues Complaints About Possibility of US Deploying THAAD to Korea

The Chinese continue to push this issues knowing full well that if they do not want THAAD in Korea then get the North Korea to quit making threats against the ROK:

China’s top diplomat to Seoul said Wednesday he is opposed to the possible U.S. deployment of an advanced missile-defense (MD) system in South Korea as it would hurt Sino-Korean ties, a lawmaker said.

The United States has said it is considering deploying a Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery, an integral part of its MD system, to South Korea, citing evolving threats from North Korea. It is designed to shoot down short, medium and intermediate ballistic missiles at a higher altitude in their terminal phase using a hit-to-kill method.

The possibility has been a focus of media attention as it is seen as part of a broader U.S. attempt to get the Asian ally to join its air defense system and could spark tensions with China and Russia, who see it as a threat to their security interests.

“The THAAD would have a range of around 2,000 kilometers, which goes beyond the goal of countering missiles from North Korea,” Chinese ambassador to South Korea Qiu Guohong was quoted as saying by Rep. Won Hye-young of the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy (NPAD).  [Yonhap]

You can read more at the link, but it is interesting that the Chinese do not care that the ROK has the Super Green Pine as well as the SPY-1 radars on their Aegis ships that can also have the range to look into China.