Missile system in S Korea would hurt Seoul-Beijing ties: Ambassador

The South Korean Defense Ministry’s announcement came as Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is scheduled to hold talks Tuesday with U.S. State Secretary John Kerry in Washington.

Kim Jong-un’s regime has branded them “preparations for war” – amid spiralling tensions after North Korea’s recent nuclear test and rocket launch.

“Ultimately, by opposing Thaad deployment, Beijing is trying to directly influence South Korea’s strategic choices, and in doing so, weaken the US-Korea alliance”, said assistant professor Michael Raska from the Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore. “Our response to the North Korean proposal was consistent with our longstanding focus on denuclearization”, Kirby said, adding that North Korea had rejected the counterproposal.

South Korea said that the measures are necessary to ensure safety from North Korea.

“I think they have posed a very distinct and real threat, not only to peace and stability on the Korean peninsula but globally”, Harris said.

Qiu, though, made it clear that the THAAD issue was affecting the UN Security Council talks.

Harris also accused China of aggressive behavior in the South China Sea, noting its building of artificial islands and deployment of anti-aircraft missiles and radar to islands in the region. The Daily Mail suggests that, while the number of USA troops is twice that expected for this particular operation, it is more in the territory of four times the number of troops the United States typically commits to similar endeavors.

The United States does not rule out a possible military action against North Korea, if Pyongyang continues to develop its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs, says a top U.S. military commander. The newspaper said that this was one of several failed efforts to discuss denuclearization with North Korea made during President Barack Obama’s second term in office.

Hours after North Korea launched a long-range rocket carrying a satellite on February 7, the allies announced plans to begin talks on bringing THAAD to the peninsula as part of efforts to counter North Korea’s advancing nuclear and missile threats.

North Korea has claimed that it has mastered the technology to make nuclear warheads small enough to mount on missiles, though outside analysts question the country’s miniaturisation technology. The two countries have also begun preparatory talks to deploy a Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense anti-missile system in South Korea.