SEOUL: South Korea’s government and airline companies will meet on Tuesday to discuss China’s rejection of applications by Korean carriers to add charter flights between the two countries for early this year, a government official said on Monday.
South Korean Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho said on Sunday he would look into whether China’s decision, which came ahead of a traditional surge in Lunar New Year travel, was “related to” the planned deployment of a U. S. anti-missile system in South Korea.
Yoo told reporters there were “several suspected cases of non-tariff barriers” following last year’s decision to deploy the U. S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) system and South Korea needed to determine China’s “real intention”.
China’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on a holiday, while China’s Civil Aviation Administration was not immediately reachable.
China worries that the THAAD’s powerful radar can penetrate its territory and has objected to the deployment, which South Korea and the United States say is aimed solely at countering any threat from North Korea.
South Korean carriers Asiana Airlines, Jeju Air and Jin Air, an affiliate of Korean Air Lines, said their applications for charter flights to China were rejected for January and February, with no reason given.
