South Korea and the US are expected to begin talks next week on the possible deployment of an advanced US missile defense system following North Korea’s recent rocket launch, officials said on Friday, as Seoul cut power to a factory park run jointly with the North.
The discussions are to focus on placing one Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system with US military forces stationed in South Korea, a South Korean defense official told reporters on condition of anonymity.
Pentagon spokesman Commander Bill Urban said in an e-mail that a joint working group would “review all aspects regarding the potential of deployment of a THAAD system to South Korea.”
“We expect the first meeting to occur next week,” he said.
North Korea launched a long-range rocket on Sunday last week carrying what it called a satellite, drawing renewed international condemnation just weeks after it carried out a nuclear bomb test.
It said the launch was for peaceful purposes, but Seoul and Washington have said it violated UN Security Council resolutions, because it used ballistic missile technology.
North Korea’s nuclear bomb test last month was also banned by a UN resolution.
On Wednesday, South Korea suspended operations at the Kaesong industrial zone as punishment for the rocket launch and nuclear test. The zone, just inside North Korea, had operated for more than a decade.
The North on Thursday called the action “a declaration of war” and expelled the South’s workers. Kaesong was the last venue for regular interaction between the divided Koreas.
The 280 South Koreans who had remained in Kaesong rushed to leave the industrial park on Thursday evening, completing the pullout at 11:05pm, according to the South Korean Ministry of Unification, which handles relations with the North.
A few minutes before midnight, the South shut off the supply of electricity into Kaesong that powered the factory zone, the ministry said early on Friday.
It also cut the water supply.
The US, Japan and South Korea are seeking tougher UN sanctions against North Korea in the wake of the nuclear test and rocket launch.
Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi (王毅) said that Beijing, North Korea’s neighbor and main ally, supported a Security Council resolution to make Pyongyang “pay the necessary price” for the launch.
He also expressed concern over the possible US deployment of its sophisticated THAAD system to South Korea, saying it could also be used to target China.
US military officials have said the THAAD system is needed in South Korea, but Seoul had been reluctant to openly discuss its deployment given the risk of damaging ties with China, its biggest trade partner.
Russia has also expressed concern about the potential deployment of THAAD, saying it could trigger an arms race in Northeast Asia.
South Korea and the US have said the system, built by Lockheed Martin and designed to intercept and destroy ballistic missiles inside or just outside the atmosphere during their final phase of flight, would be focused only on North Korea.
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