S.Korean presidential hopeful raises doubt about THAAD capability, aim behind deployment

A rising South Korean presidential hopeful raised doubts about the capability of Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) and the motives behind the agreed-upon deployment of the U.S. missile defense system in the South Korean soil.

Lee Jae-myung, mayor of Seongnam, told foreign correspondents the U.S. anti-missile system would never help South Korea defend its metropolitan area from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)'s missile attacks.

Seoul and Washington agreed in July to install one THAAD battery by the end of next year in southeastern South Korea. THAAD interceptors are incapable of reaching the capital city and its adjacent areas, where about half of the country's 50 million population reside.

DPRK missiles are known to fly at a much lower altitude than the one at which THAAD interceptors travel, bolstering doubts about the U.S. missile shield's capability to shoot down missiles from the northern neighbor.

The United States wants THAAD deployed in South Korea as part of its missile defense strategy in Northeast Asia, but his country will suffer from losses rather than make gains considering the damaged ties with China, the mayor said.

Lee said China has opposed the THAAD deployment as it sees the THAAD's X-band radar as a kind of eye that can peer into Chinese territory in cooperation with Japan and the United States.

He argued for South Korea's adoption of an independent, balanced diplomacy between China and the United States, saying Seoul should refrain from siding with one party. Endit