U. S. officials are proceeding with the deployment of a missile defense battery in South Korea despite the impeachment and removal of the South Korean president Park Geun-hye. Leaders change over time, that’s not new, Navy. Capt. Jeff Davis, Pentagon…
U. S. officials are proceeding with the deployment of a missile defense battery in South Korea despite the impeachment and removal of the South Korean president Park Geun-hye.
« Leaders change over time, that’s not new, » Navy. Capt. Jeff Davis, Pentagon spokesman, told reporters Friday. « This is something that is needed militarily. That agreement was reached and we remain committed to delivering on it. »
Park’s removal was finalized by the South Korean Constitutional Court following bribery and corruption charges involving a close aide. China, which has long opposed the deployment of the defense system, wasted no time in urging the post-Park government to reverse course now that she is gone.
« We will not comment on the impeachment case…, » Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said Friday. « As for her decision to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense [THAAD] system, China has expressed definite opposition. »
South Korea’s military has been on high-alert due to a series of North Korean missile tests and launches, as well as the assassination of dictator Kim Jong Un’s half-brother through the use of a chemical weapon.
