December 07, 2023
Opinion

Why it makes sense to deploy THAAD in South Korea

While there are several arguments against the deployment, many of them are inconsistent

After five months of bilateral consultations, South Korea and the U.S. have announced the planned deployment of a THAAD (Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense) battery to South Korea. Under the agreement, the U.S. will provide the hardware and equipment, and South Korea will provide the land for the battery, which will be located at Seongju, North Gyeongsang Province, about 25-30 km from the City of Daegu.

The location will be outside the range of North Korea’s long-range artillery and the battery will be able to provide protection to Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek as well as Kunsan Airbase and several South Korean military facilities, including the Gyeryongdae military complex and headquarters near the City of Daejeon.