Parties collide over THAAD

Protesters in front of Lotte Department Store in Gwangju on Saturday spread out a banner ahead of ripping it in a bid to protest against the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system and Lotte Group. The chaebol conglomerate signed a land swap deal with the Ministry of National Defense in late February to provide the government with a site for hosting the THAAD. / Yonhap

By Ko Dong-hwan

Ruling and opposition parties of South Korea on Saturday clashed over the planned deployment of an advanced U.S. missile defense system amid strong protest from China.

Whereas the ruling Liberty Korea Party said the nation should keep pushing forward the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system regardless of Chinese threats, the opposition parties insisted next administration must deal with the task.

China unleashed economic retaliation against Korea because of concerns the THAAD system will have an adverse impact on its military strategy.

The Liberty Korea Party said in a statement, “It is ironic that China is overacting towards the THAAD battery which came as a self-defense measure," adding China should be responsible for not fully complying with the U.N. sanction against North Korea’s provocations using nukes and missiles.

"South Korea plans to deploy the THAAD battery because of the North Korean nukes and missiles," the party said, urging the main opposition Democratic Party had better suggest a clear stance on the system.

The Democratic Party said South Korea should be more careful about the deployment, adding the plan must first win approval from the National Assembly.

The party said, "It is inappropriate for a big country like China to implement excessive regulations and retaliations to the private sector," claiming the deployment should be reviewed comprehensively by the new government.