Korea’s Moon to send delegation to China amid frayed ties

The deployment of THAAD was agreed by former President Park Geun-hye’s administration past year. And if conditions are met I will go to Pyongyang. On Wednesday, Moon officially assumed the post of president of South Korea.

While the US claims the system – Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system, or THAAD – is necessary to protect Seoul from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Beijing views the deployment as going far beyond defending the south from the DPRK, instead boosting USA capabilities for looking deep into Chinese territory and blunting China’s “second-strike” capability in case of a nuclear confrontation with the U.S.

The two also discussed the issue of the deployment of the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile defense system on the Korean peninsula.

President Moon’s landslide victory still faces the aftermath of political corruption, but he is also challenged by the looming issue of North Korea’s recent missile and nuclear tests.

Moon advocated dialogue with the North as well as sanctions, adopting a more conciliatory stance than his predecessor.

China says the system does little to curb the threat posed by North Korea’s nuclear and missile programmes, which Pyongyang has been pressing ahead with in defiance of US pressure and United Nations sanctions. It’s highly unlikely that Moon will pursue the same level of rapprochement that past liberal governments took.

Abe also said he’d like to host a trilateral summit in Tokyo with his Chinese and South Korean peers as soon as possible, and hold a bilateral meeting with Moon as well.

Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a congratulatory telegram to newly elected South Korean President Moon Jae-in on May 10 in which he called for “appropriately deal with disagreements on the basis of mutual interests and respect and to increase collaboration and cooperation”. Moon’s remark indicates his willingness to renegotiate the agreement, observers said.

South Korean conglomerate Lotte, which gave up its golf course in southern Seongju county for Thaad’s deployment, stands to lose up to 500 billion won (S$624 million) if most of its 120 retail outlets in China are forced to remain closed.

Trump has called for South Korea to pay the US $1 billion for a system the USA has always described as in America’s vital security interests.

“Military action on the Korean peninsula can not happen without Korea’s consent”, Moon wrote during his presidential campaign, the Atlantic reports.

Stangarone also added that whatever worldwide plans Moon has, the economic situation in South Korea and the fact that he was elected following an impeachment mean that domestic issues will constrain what he wants to do.

According to government officials, Abe called for the construction of future-oriented relations between Japan and South Korea. And while he argued that it was desirable for South Korea to take the initiative in dealing with the North, and that he was prepared to meet with Mr. Kim if it might help, he said he believed that he and Mr. Trump were “on the same page”.

Japan is particularly concerned about the “comfort women” issue, a legacy of Japanese atrocities during the war that still haunts relations between the two sides.

During his election campaign, Moon pledged to renegotiate the deal with Japan.

The leaders agreed to strengthen their countries’ alliance.