Missile Defense for Korea The U.S. and its ally can deploy a new system, unless China gets a veto.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/missile-defense-for-korea-1444952060
North Korea could have as many as 100 nuclear bombs within five years and may already be able to mount warheads on missiles capable of reaching the United States. Those are the latest estimates of Pyongyang’s atomic capabilities, and they will be at the center of the discussion Barack Obama will have with Park Geun-hye when the South Korean President visits the White House Friday. So it’s good the two democracies can do something about it.
That’s thanks to Thaad, or Terminal High-Altitude Air Defense. This U.S.-built system’s powerful radar and sophisticated interceptors would allow U.S. and South Korean forces to intercept missiles across distances of up to 200 kilometers, compared with about 35 kilometers with the Patriot systems currently deployed around the Korean peninsula.
Deploying Thaad would integrate South Korean defenses into a regional network of U.S. and Japanese sensors, enabling more accurate detection and interception of missiles from multiple angles and at multiple points in their flight path. Trilateral cooperation might also soothe some of the enduring tensions between South Korea and Japan over the latter’s militarist past.
All of this is so plainly beneficial that it comes as no surprise that China and Russia are pressing Seoul not to deploy Thaad. China’s Xinhua news agency has warned that by integrating into U.S.-led regional missile defenses, Seoul would “sacrifice its fast-developing relations with China.” China’s Foreign Ministry has instructed South Korean decision makers to “take into account others’ security concerns as well as regional peace and stability,” a sentiment echoed by Russian officials.
South Korea now trades more with China than with the U.S. and Japan combined, so Beijing has real leverage. Ms. Park took her first overseas trip to Beijing after becoming president in 2013, has met Chinese leader Xi Jinping six times, and was an honored guest at his military parade last month marking the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II. She has also remained mute as the U.S. and other Asian democracies have grown alarmed over China’s aggressive behavior in the East and South China Seas.
As an alternative to Thaad, Ms. Park could go for an indigenous—and weaker—antiballistic missile system. But that’s still under development, leaving South Korea vulnerable to Pyongyang’s blackmail and belligerence. Thaad also seems to have the backing of South Korean Defense Minister Han Min-koo, who called the system “helpful to our security and defense.”
Ms. Park appears not to have made a decision, and officials won’t comment on their discussions. Some of our sources suspect Ms. Park may only embrace Thaad after North Korea’s next nuclear or missile test. The better course is to announce a system upgrade without waiting for a provocation from Pyongyang, much less permission from Beijing. It would be a useful reminder to both regimes that democracies have the technological capabilities, and moral will, to defend themselves.
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