Why THAAD objections depend a lot on politics, in Korea and beyond



Opinion Why THAAD objections depend a lot on politics, in Korea and beyond Chinese objections reflect understandable self-interest, but same cannot be said of S. Korea's left John Lee July 15, 2016 SHARE COPY LINK FACEBOOK X LINKEDIN MASTODON NK News Something had to give. After years of Seoul doing little more than helplessly watching North Korean tyrants testing their nuclear weapons and missiles, which Kim Jong Un hopes to someday use to cow South Korea and the United States into accepting his goals for the peninsula, the allies finally made a decision to toss up the status quo. Despite two years of debating, teasing, and dithering regarding the deployment of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery in Korea, Seoul and Washington finally agreed to deploy the missile defense system on July 8. And on July 13, it was © Korea Risk Group. All rights reserved. No part of this content may be reproduced, distributed, or used for commercial purposes without prior written permission from Korea Risk Group. Get the Daily Update & Podcast Updates Start your day with the North Korea stories that matter most – as selected by Trending

Opinion

Why THAAD objections depend a lot on politics, in Korea and beyond

Chinese objections reflect understandable self-interest, but same cannot be said of S. Korea's left

John Lee July 15, 2016

Why THAAD objections depend a lot on politics, in Korea and beyond

NK News

Something had to give. After years of Seoul doing little more than helplessly watching North Korean tyrants testing their nuclear weapons and missiles, which Kim Jong Un hopes to someday use to cow South Korea and the United States into accepting his goals for the peninsula, the allies finally made a decision to toss up the status quo.

Despite two years of debating, teasing, and dithering regarding the deployment of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery in Korea, Seoul and Washington finally agreed to deploy the missile defense system on July 8. And on July 13, it was

About the Author

John Lee

John Lee is the Managing Editor of Korea Pro, based in Seoul, where he leads daily executive briefings, in-depth analyses and high-level events for business leaders, diplomats and policy professionals. Since joining Korea Pro in 2022, he has expanded the platform’s coverage of South Korea’s economy, trade and foreign policy and moderates its flagship Korea Business Forum and Seoul Circuit series. Before taking the helm at Korea Pro, John contributed to NK News and Korea Pro as a writer focused on South Korean foreign policy and U.S.-ROK relations. His work blends on-the-ground reporting with data-driven analysis of South Korea’s political economy, economic security and its evolving role in global affairs.

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