New S.Korean govt seeks vote on THAAD
S.Korea ruling party asks for immediate halt of installation
South Korea’s ruling Minjoo Party said Friday that it will push for public hearing on the US Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile defense system to stop conflicts over the issue.
Shim Jae-kwon, head of the Minjoo Party’s special committee on THAAD, told reporters in the parliamentary building that the committee will push the parliamentary hearing on the THAAD deployment.
On April 26, part of a THAAD battery was transported to a golf course in southeast South Korea, causing strong protest from residents and peace activists. AntiTHAAD protesters demanded the public consensus and the parliamentary hearing whether to deploy the US missile shield.
US President Donald Trump said South Korea should pay for the THAAD, which would be installed in the country, and he estimated the costs at $1 billion. Trump’s comments triggered strong public opposition as the previous government claimed South Korea’s offer of land for the deployment in return for the deployment and operation that the US bears the burden for.
Shim urged the defense ministry to immediately stop the illegal installation of the US missile interception system as the new government was launched.
On his campaign trail, South Korean President Moon Jae-in repeatedly mentioned the need for the parliamentary approval and the public consensus before the THAAD deployment.
Shim said the government should launch preparation for the parliamentary ratification process to prevent unneces- sary conflicts over the THAAD issue.
Also on Friday, North Korea demanded the extradition of South Korea’s spy chief, accusing him of being a mastermind of a plot to assassinate its leader, Kim Jong-un, with a biochemical weapon.
The North’s KCNA state news agency last week accused the US Central Intelligence Agency and South Korea’s National Intelligence Service of a plot to assassinate its “supreme leadership” with a biochemical weapon.
The accusation came after weeks of tension over North Korea’s nuclear and missile development and fears it will conduct a sixth nuclear test or test-launch another ballistic missile in defiance of UN Security Council resolutions.
The North on Friday sent a rare letter of protest to the US House of Representatives warning that a new package of tougher sanctions would only spur its development of nuclear weapons, KCNA reported.
The protest was lodged by the recently revived Foreign Affairs Committee of North Korea’s Supreme People’s Assembly. “The US House of Representatives should think twice,” the committee said in its letter, a copy of which was published by KCNA.
The House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved legislation this month to tighten sanctions by targeting North Korea’s shipping industry.
“As the US House of Representatives enacts more and more of these reckless hostile laws, the DPRK’s efforts to strengthen nuclear deterrents will gather greater pace, beyond anyone’s imagination,”
the committee said.
Aspecial committee of South Korea’s ruling Minjoo Party said Friday that it will push for a public hearing on the US Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) anti-missile system to end controversies over the issue, and will seek to bring the issue of THAAD deployment to parliament for deliberation.
The committee said that since the new government has been established, administrative organs should immediately stop illegally deploying THAAD. The newly elected President Moon Jae-in had said multiple times during the election campaign that THAAD should be submitted for a vote in parliament.
The deployment of THAAD is the biggest legacy of the conservative government in South Korea. The conservatives had hard pressed for its deployment, and the military had worked together with the US to put major parts of the system in place before the South Korean presidential election, so that the new administration could not overturn the deployment easily.
The forceful installation by the interim government clearly violated South Korean legal procedure, and it met with strong opposition.
It is now a new situation of power struggle in South Korea. The military and conservative forces, including some mainstream media, support the deployment, while the victory of the Minjoo Party has strengthened the opposition forces. The economic interests and residents in Seongju-gun may become more vocal in demanding its suspension or postponement.
However, THAAD had never been a solely domestic issue of South Korea. What attitudes China and the US take will continue to be a focus of debate in South Korea.
China should make its opposition to THAAD more clear. It is certain that the deployment of THAAD will seriously damage Sino-South Korean relations.
The US is the real power behind the THAAD deployment. By establishing THAAD, Washington can not only deal with North Korea, but more importantly will contain the strategic deterrence of Chinese missiles and strengthen its military coalition with South Korea and its Northeast Asia alliance.
China should adjust its manner of dealing with South Korea, and show to the Korean society that opposition against THAAD does not mean China belittles South Korea or is indifferent to the Sino-South Korean relations.
The South Korean society should make decisions for the country’s long-term interest and not make the THAAD issue a bone of contention with China.
Denuclearization is the ultimate end for the peninsula, and THAAD’s deployment goes against it. The South Korean society will eventually understand this and make a right choice.