01 June 2017

News Report: S Korea Vows to Continue to Host US THAAD Amid Probe Into Launchers Delivery

South Korean President Moon Jae-in
Seoul’s probe into the US Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system's deployment is not aimed at conducting a review of the decision of the system’s deployment on South Korean territory, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said Wednesday in a statement obtained by the Yonhap news agency from presidential spokesman Park Soo-hyun.

TOKYO (Sputnik) – On Tuesday, Moon ordered an investigation into a secret entry of four rocket launchers into the country under the US missile defense program and demanded to reveal who had authorized the delivery of rocket launchers and why this was not disclosed.

"Procedures over THAAD are entirely domestic ones; we do not intend to change the existing decision or send a different message to the U.S.," Moon said.

Park conveyed Moon’s words in the follow-up the meeting between the South Korean president and US senator Dick Durbin

In July 2016, Seoul and Washington agreed to deploy a THAAD system in South Korea's Seongju County to amid the increase of the so-called North Korean "threat," an issue which is becoming more pressing with the increasing number of Pyongyang’s missile tests. Solely over the past month, North Korea carried out missile launches on May 15, 21 and most recently, on Monday.

Moon, who officially assumed office on May 10, has repeatedly criticized the previous government under impeached leader Park Geun-hye for agreeing to host the THAAD system without seeking parliamentary approval.

This story first appeared on Sputnik & is reposted here with permission.