By all appearances it seems the US and ROK governments pushed ahead with the installation of the THAAD missile defense system before the upcoming ROK presidential election though USFK is not commenting on this:
U.S. military vehicle moves past banners opposing a plan to deploy an advanced U.S. missile defense system called Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, as South Korean police officers stand guard in Seongju, South Korea, Wednesday, April 26, 2017. South Korea says key parts of a contentious U.S. missile defense system have been installed a day after rival North Korea showed off its military power. (Kim Jun-bum / AP)
The United States military started installing a controversial anti-missile defense system in South Korea overnight Tuesday, triggering protests and sparking criticism that it was rushing to get the battery in place before the likely election of a president who opposes it.
The sudden and unannounced move came only six days after U.S. Forces Korea secured the land to deploy the system, known as the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD.
Moon Jae-in, a liberal candidate who has a strong lead in the polls ahead of the May 9 presidential election, has promised to review South Korea’s decision to host the anti-missile battery.
“There’s a sense in Seoul that THAAD deployment has been rushed based on the timetable of South Korea’s presidential election, rather than North Korea’s threats,” said John Delury, a professor of international relations at Yonsei University in Seoul.
“To some extent, the acceleration of THAAD deployment has ‘worked,’ limiting the next South Korean leader’s room for maneuver,” Delury said. “But there’s the danger of a backlash among the South Korean public feeling like a pawn in the game of ‘America First.’ ”
U.S. Forces Korea did not make any statement about the deployment and did not immediately respond to a request for comment about why the installation was started in the dead of night. [Chicago Tribune]
You can read more at the link, but the real surprise is that people are surprised by this. USFK and the ROK government have been publicly signaling for months that the deployment will be accelerated.
Moon Jae-in is saying that the deployment decision should have been left up to the next government after reaching a national consensus.
“Moon Jae-in has been consistent in his position on the THAAD deployment: that must be decided by the next administration after enough public discussion and by national consensus,” Park Kwang-on said in a statement.
“Any deployment that completely ignores appropriate processes must be suspended now and the final decision should be made after consultation between South Korea and the U.S.” he said.
Anyway the US military did Mr. Moon a great favor because now when he likely becomes President he does not have to worry about this decision and can just blame the last government for allowing it to happen to appease his leftist base while getting the increased defense benefit against North Korea provided by THAAD.
Here is what was happening at the site as the equipment was rolling in:
In Seongju county, at the location of the THAAD site, around 4,000 police were present to ensure the equipment’s delivery. Around 400 protesters were present at a demonstration near the site, and police in riot gear held back protesters as the equipment rolled past on military trucks. Hwang Soo-young, an activist with the government watchdog group, the People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy (PSPD), was at the site of the protest Wednesday morning. She claimed that the protests turned violent as “police were pushing residents away.”
She claimed six people were injured during the encounter, although CNN has not been able to independently verify the claim. She said that vehicles with equipment “including radar, launchers and generators” started passing the village of Soseongri at around 4.45 a.m. (3.45 p.m. Tuesday ET). [CNN]
You can read more at the link, but apparently the residents are upset that they did not know about the deployment of the vehicles to the site. Did they really think the US military would tell them when the equipment would drive to the site so they militant leftist groups that don’t live in Seongju could mobilize and block the road?
It will be interesting to see if the THAAD site in Seongju becomes a big cause for the Korean left to continue to protest or not over the coming months.
Moon Jae-in, South Korea’s leading presidential candidate, on Sunday announced a set of policies on North Korea and national security, including an early recovery from the United States of wartime operational control (OPCON) of South Korean forces.
At a press conference in the National Assembly, Moon, candidate for the Democratic Party, said he and his government “will take back the wartime OPCON early” and enhance deterrence against North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats.
“We will take charge of our defense ourselves by all intents and purposes,” Moon said.
The OPCON transfer, which was previously set for 2015, was deferred amid Pyongyang’s provocations. Seoul and Washington have agreed on the “conditions-based” transfer, which observers say could come sometime in the 2020 [Yonhap]
Korean War veterans from the British Commonwealth lay flowers during a ceremony at the War Memorial Hall in Seoul on the occasion of the anniversary of Anzac Day on April 25, 2017. Anzac Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand that commemorates all Australians and New Zealanders who served and died in all wars, conflicts and peacekeeping operations. Britain and 15 other nations fought for South Korea against invading North Korea under the U.N. flag during the 1950-53 war. The Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs (MPBA) invited them. (Photo courtesy of MPBA) (Yonhap)
Here is horrible story about a 70 year old Korean woman on a dream vacation to Europe that was severely injured in the March 22nd terrorist attack in London:
Park, who sustained a head injury in a terror attack in London on March 22, is hospitalized at St Mary’s Hospital, London. She is photographed here on Friday local time. [KIM SUNG-TAK]Bang Young-sook’s mother was having the holiday of her dreams. An orchard farmer from Yeongcheon, North Gyeongsang, the 70-year-old Park was all smiles as she and her husband posed on London’s picturesque Westminster Bridge on the afternoon of March 22.
The couple’s group tour to Europe was paid for by their children. Britain was their first stop. After the photo was snapped, Park’s husband walked on while Park stopped to arrange her selfie stick.
That brief pause led to tragedy. Park’s husband heard screams and turned back. A car had ploughed into the pedestrians on the bridge – and his wife was among dozens mowed down.
The terror attack in London by a 52-year old convert to Islam killed five and injured 50. Five Koreans were injured and Park sustained the most serious injuries. The other four, people in their 50s and 60s, were discharged after being treated for fractures and minor injuries. Park is still in London’s St Mary’s Hospital. In the pandemonium on the bridge, Park fell and hit her head. She required brain surgery. [Joong Ang Ilbo]
I could have just as easily titled this posting as being “Moon Jae-in Vows To Help North Korea Build Nuclear Weapons and Missiles” because that is what the Sunshine Policy allowed North Korea to do:
Moon Jae-in, the Democratic Party’s presidential candidate, holds a press conference at the National Assembly in Seoul on April 23, 2017, announcing a set of security and North Korean policies. (Yonhap)
Moon pledged that South Korea will play a bigger role in efforts to denuclearize the North and push for denuclearization based on simultaneous actions by stakeholders instead of demanding the North first show its resolve to give up atomic weapons.
The front-runner candidate said he will carry out former President Kim Dae-jung’s “Sunshine Policy” to engage with the North to ultimately persuade Pyongyang to change. [Yonhap]
I wonder what Moon means by simultaneous actions? Is that code for giving North Korea billions of dollars in aid for them to pretend they are not building nuclear weapons and missiles and then have them tear up the deal at a time of their choosing, launch provocations, and then demand a new deal? That is what historically the Sunshine Policy has been.
It appears for now the North Koreans are holding off on a nuclear test and instead held a military drill with 300-400 artillery pieces. It is pretty clear the signal the Kim regime is sending is that this artillery can obliterate Seoul if ordered to:
South Korea’s military said Tuesday that North Korea held major live-fire drills in an area around its eastern coastal town of Wonsan as it marked the anniversary of the founding of its military.
The exercise took place as a U.S. guided-missile submarine arrived in South Korea and envoys from the United States, Japan and South Korea met in Tokyo to discuss the growing threat posed by North Korea’s nuclear weapons and missiles program.
Experts thought North Korea might conduct a nuclear test or a ballistic missile launch to mark the anniversary, but as of Tuesday evening neither had occurred.
Crowds in Pyongyang, the North Korean capital, laid flowers and paid respects at giant statues of the country’s former leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, one day after the minister of defense reiterated that the North was ready to use pre-emptive strikes or any measures it deems necessary to defend itself against “U.S. imperialists.”
“The situation prevailing on the Korean Peninsula is so tense that a nuclear war may break out due to the frantic war drills of the U.S. imperialists and their vassal forces for aggression,” Gen. Pak Yong Sik told a meeting of thousands of senior military and civilian officials. [Associated Press]
Here is an interesting video I saw on Youtube the describes the day that North Korea attempted to shoot down the legendary SR-71 Blackbird reconnaissance aircraft. As you would expect they had little success:
A U-2 ultra-high altitude reconnaissance aircraftlands at the the U.S. air force’s Osan air base, south of Seoul, after a mission on April 24, 2017, one day ahead of the anniversary of the foundation of the North Korean army. Concerns are mounting on the possibility of the North’s sixth nuclear test on the occasion of the anniversary. (Yonhap)
