Jen Judson
WASHINGTON — The United States and South Korea have decided together to deploy the US Army’s Terminal High Altitude Area Defense System (THAAD) to the Korean Peninsula as North Korea continues to conduct intermediate-range ballistic missile launches.
According to a Pentagon statement released Thursday night, the US and South Korea will deploy THAAD “as a defensive measure to ensure the security of the ROK and its people and to protect alliance military forces from North Korea’s weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile threats.”
ROK is an abbreviation for Republic of Korea often used by the US military for South Korea.
The US and South Korea have been conducting formal discussions regarding the “feasibility” of sending a THAAD battery since early February, according to the Pentagon. The battery will be operated by US Forces Korea, the statement indicated.
A joint US-South Korea working group reviewed THAAD’s military effectiveness in Korea and “is in the final stage of preparing its recommendation” for South Korea’s minister of national defense and US Defense Secretary Ash Carter on the “optimal site” in the country for “the system’s effectiveness and for environmental, health, and safety requirements," the statement read.
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