hankyoreh

The US is continuing its attempts to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile defense system with US Forces Korea. We hope that the government will clearly state its rejection of these plans and not try to deceive the Korean people.

On Sept. 30, Robert Work, US Deputy Secretary of Defense, said that the US is deliberating with the South Korean government about deploying THAAD. The remarks go beyond what the official said during a visit to South Korea in August that the US wants the Korea Air and Missile Defense System (KAMD) to be perfectly interoperable with THAAD.

Beginning last year, the US has been looking for excuses to deploy THAAD with US Forces Korea. Since the first half of this year, senior American officials have said on multiple occasions that deliberations on the issue are taking place with the South Korean government.

Despite this, the South Korean Ministry of Defense is making excuses, insisting that no deliberations are taking place, and that the US has not made an official request on the matter. The ministry is basically saying that the matter does not concern South Korea, since it is only being discussed by US Forces Korea and the US government. A sovereign state should not be behaving in this fashion.

We should also take issue with Work’s remarks that the US is continuing to deliberate about the deployment of THAAD with China and Russia in order to reduce their concerns. The US attitude implicit here is that if China and Russia yield on the issue, the US will deploy THAAD in South Korea regardless of Seoul’s position on the matter.

The very fact that Work is able to make these remarks so easily is an expression of American arrogance. To be sure, it is unlikely that China and Russia - which regard the deployment of THAAD as a strategic threat - will agree to these American overtures. But considering that the nature of international politics is prioritizing national interest, there is no reason why the security of the Korean peninsula cannot become a bargaining chip for these three major powers.

One of the primary reasons that the situation has been developing in this manner is the irresponsible behavior of the Korean government. Korean Defense Minister Han Min-gu and Blue House National Security Chief Kim Kwan-jin have taken actions suggesting that they are not opposed to THAAD being deployed with US Forces Korea.

Rumor has it that the South Korean government wants to make a “backroom deal,” allowing the US to deploy THAAD in the country in exchange for delaying the transfer of wartime operational control to South Korea. If that is true, it is the worst possible choice, as it would mean deferring South Korea’s sovereignty over its own national defense while compromising the country’s security.

The entire world knows that THAAD is a key component of the American missile defense system, and that the system is primarily designed with China and Russia in mind. THAAD operates in tandem with an X-band radar that is capable of monitoring the entire territory of China, and the general view is that the US had made a great effort to deploy this in South Korea in the past as well.

Deploying THAAD with US Forces Korea is a prime example of missing the forest for the trees: trading an uncertain advantage in deterring North Korean missile attacks for a certain loss in the security environment. The government needs to bring an end to this debate by immediately expressing its opposition to the deployment of THAAD.

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]