THAAD to ignite huge backlash from China
By Yi Whan-woo
The planned deployment of an advanced U.S. missile defense system on the Korean Peninsula is expected to deal a blow to South Korea’s relations with China and Russia.
China immediately protested the decision after South Korea and the U.S. issued an official announcement Friday that they will deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system to effectively handle North Korea’s evolving missile threats.
“The THAAD system does not help achieve the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and also hurts peace and stability in the region,” the Chinese foreign ministry said in a statement.
In addition, it summoned two allies’ ambassadors to China ―Kim Jang-soo of South Korea and Max Baucus of the United States ― in protest of the decision.
China and Russia have argued that THAAD’s long-range radar can be used to spy on their military activities despite U.S. assurances that the missile shield will be only used for detecting and shooting down North Korea’s missiles.
Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se convened an emergency meeting with senior diplomats later in the day to discuss possible measures in response to China’s reaction.
Russia on Friday expressed “very serious concern” over the decision.
“The United States, with the support of its allies, continues to build the capacity of the Asia-Pacific segment of the global missile defense system, which tends to undermine the existing strategic balance in the Asia-Pacific region and beyond,” the Russian foreign ministry said in a statement. “Such actions ... have the most negative impact on global strategic stability, which Washington so likes to discuss a commitment to.”
The analysts believed that the THAAD deployment will hamper South Korea’s efforts to win support from China and Russia in further pressing North Korea on giving up its nuclear ambitions.
They also speculated that Beijing, Seoul’s largest trading partner, may take retaliatory measures. China accounted for 26 percent of South Korea’s exports of last year.
China’s national flag is seen at the Chinese Embassy in Seoul, Friday, while tensions are mounting between South Korea and China following the former’s decision to deploy a THAAD battery here. / Yonhap
In this regard, Seoul had been reluctant to answer Washington’s repeated calls for the THAAD deployment on its soil before President Park Geun-hye said in January that South Korea will review the issue of whether to allow the U.S. Forces Korea to deploy the THAAD system from the perspective of national security and interest.
“THAAD is likely to overshadow security in Northeast Asia as long as it is deployed and remains on the peninsula,” said Park Won-gon, an international relations professor at Handong Global University. “I’m concerned that the cooperation against Pyongyang may weaken.”
He proposed deploying THAAD under a condition that it will be removed if North Korea’s threats abate.
“In this climate, it seems to be a viable option to placate China and Russia,” Park said.
Kim Hong-gyu, director of Ajou University’s Chinese policy research institute, echoed Park’s view.
“South Korea will have difficulty in discussing inter-Korean unification and other visions concerning Northeast Asia with China in the future,” he said.
Military analysts raised speculation that China will also regard the deployment of THAAD as South Korea’s possible step to join a trilateral missile defense system with the United States and Japan.
Seoul has been developing its indigenous missile shield, the Korean Air and Missile Defense System (KAMD) and opted not to be a part of the U.S.-led missile defense system.
“Beijing may doubt Seoul is geared toward accelerating trilateral security alliance with Washington and Tokyo contain a rising China,” said Yang Uk, a senior research fellow at the Korea Defense and Security Forum.
Given that China is Pyongyang’s economic lifeline and political backer, President Park has made efforts to improve the relationship with Beijing, hoping that the Chinese government will curb the North’s pursuit of nuclear weapons. President Park even attended China’s massive military parade in September to mark the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, something that the leaders of other U.S. allies did not do.