By Jun Ji-hye
The Ministry of National Defense has picked three alternate sites for the deployment of a U.S. anti-missile system and started evaluations Monday, according to officials.
The move came a week after the chief of Seongju County, North Gyeongsang Province, officially asked the ministry to pick an alternate site within the county for the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery, citing that the initially planned location, Seongsan-ri, is too close to a residential area.
The three sites are a country club owned by Lotte Group in Chojeon-myeon, Mt. Yeomsok in Geumsu-myeon and Mt. Kkachi in Suryun-myeon.
"We have selected three candidates after the consultation with the local government," a ministry official said on condition of anonymity. "South Korea and the United States' joint working-level group began a process to evaluate the three places, including on-the-spot inspections."
Among the three candidates, the Lotte Skyhill Country Club is being mentioned as the most prominent alternate site, given that Mt. Yeomsok and Mt. Kkachi had been already assessed as unsuitable in the ministry's own inspection that was previously conducted.
Once the most suitable alternate site is selected after reviewing six criteria, the ministry will compare it with Seongsan-ri to decide a final location to host the THAAD battery. The six criteria are the operational availability, safety, infrastructure, perimeter security, estimated construction expense and preparatory period, according to officials.
"South Korea and the United States will jointly make a final decision on where to deploy THAAD," the official said.
Seongsan-ri is currently home to the South Korean Air Force's air defense artillery unit that operates a Hawk ground-to-air missile battery. Seoul and Washington announced last month that THAAD will be placed there by the end of next year.
Since the announcement, local residents have risen up in protest out of concern over possible detrimental health effects from electromagnetic waves emitted by the AN/TPY-2 radar. They cited that the Seongsan artillery unit is only 1.5 kilometers away from population centers. However, the U.S. and South Korean military cite that the THAAD battery's radar is safe before it reaches residential areas.
The Lotte golf club has emerged as an alternative location to host THAAD as it is located at an altitude of 680 meters above sea level, which is higher than the Seongsan artillery unit, located at an altitude of 380 meters. The golf course is also located 18 kilometers away from any residential areas in Seongju. From the ministry's point of view, those conditions seem to be better to resolve controversy over the safety of the radar.
In addition, the infrastructure and accessibility of the golf course is better than other mountains, because the road has already been established to the golf course from the town.
The ministry's acceptance of the county's request to find an alternative location has resolved the mounting conflict in Seongju to some extent, but at the same time is causing fresh protests from residents living in Gimcheon County as the county is close to the Lotte golf club.
"If the golf club is selected as a suitable alterative, we will explain the result of the inspection regarding the safety of the radar to residents," the official said.
However, even if the ministry successfully manages protests from residents, another problem is that the golf club is privately owned land, which means the government needs to use the state budget to purchase the land and build a base for an artillery unit.
Opposition lawmakers point out that the use of the state budget is subject to National Assembly approval. Once the issue is brought up in the Assembly, nobody can be sure how long it will take for lawmakers to complete deliberations, given that opposition parties have already been expressing their disagreement with the deployment.
Critics added that the ministry cannot avoid criticism for its bungled management of the THAAD deployment announcement and conflict that may consequently change its earlier position that the Seongsan artillery unit was an optimal site to host THAAD.
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The move came a week after the chief of Seongju County, North Gyeongsang Province, officially asked the ministry to pick an alternate site within the county for the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery, citing that the initially planned location, Seongsan-ri, is too close to a residential area.
The three sites are a country club owned by Lotte Group in Chojeon-myeon, Mt. Yeomsok in Geumsu-myeon and Mt. Kkachi in Suryun-myeon.
"We have selected three candidates after the consultation with the local government," a ministry official said on condition of anonymity. "South Korea and the United States' joint working-level group began a process to evaluate the three places, including on-the-spot inspections."
Among the three candidates, the Lotte Skyhill Country Club is being mentioned as the most prominent alternate site, given that Mt. Yeomsok and Mt. Kkachi had been already assessed as unsuitable in the ministry's own inspection that was previously conducted.
Once the most suitable alternate site is selected after reviewing six criteria, the ministry will compare it with Seongsan-ri to decide a final location to host the THAAD battery. The six criteria are the operational availability, safety, infrastructure, perimeter security, estimated construction expense and preparatory period, according to officials.
"South Korea and the United States will jointly make a final decision on where to deploy THAAD," the official said.
Seongsan-ri is currently home to the South Korean Air Force's air defense artillery unit that operates a Hawk ground-to-air missile battery. Seoul and Washington announced last month that THAAD will be placed there by the end of next year.
Since the announcement, local residents have risen up in protest out of concern over possible detrimental health effects from electromagnetic waves emitted by the AN/TPY-2 radar. They cited that the Seongsan artillery unit is only 1.5 kilometers away from population centers. However, the U.S. and South Korean military cite that the THAAD battery's radar is safe before it reaches residential areas.
The Lotte golf club has emerged as an alternative location to host THAAD as it is located at an altitude of 680 meters above sea level, which is higher than the Seongsan artillery unit, located at an altitude of 380 meters. The golf course is also located 18 kilometers away from any residential areas in Seongju. From the ministry's point of view, those conditions seem to be better to resolve controversy over the safety of the radar.
In addition, the infrastructure and accessibility of the golf course is better than other mountains, because the road has already been established to the golf course from the town.
The ministry's acceptance of the county's request to find an alternative location has resolved the mounting conflict in Seongju to some extent, but at the same time is causing fresh protests from residents living in Gimcheon County as the county is close to the Lotte golf club.
"If the golf club is selected as a suitable alterative, we will explain the result of the inspection regarding the safety of the radar to residents," the official said.
However, even if the ministry successfully manages protests from residents, another problem is that the golf club is privately owned land, which means the government needs to use the state budget to purchase the land and build a base for an artillery unit.
Opposition lawmakers point out that the use of the state budget is subject to National Assembly approval. Once the issue is brought up in the Assembly, nobody can be sure how long it will take for lawmakers to complete deliberations, given that opposition parties have already been expressing their disagreement with the deployment.
Critics added that the ministry cannot avoid criticism for its bungled management of the THAAD deployment announcement and conflict that may consequently change its earlier position that the Seongsan artillery unit was an optimal site to host THAAD.
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