China prods South Korea to keep promise on US-made anti-missile systems

Beijing urges Seoul’s new leader to uphold predecessor’s pledge to forgo THAAD expansion, saying ‘new officials cannot ignore past debts’

The comments come after South Korean foreign minister appears to back away from policy

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South Korea’s former president agreed in 2017 to forgo expansion of THAAD missile defence systems in the country. Photo: Reuters

Published: 5:16pm, 28 Jul 2022Updated: 5:32pm, 28 Jul 2022

Beijing has urged Seoul to uphold its previous president’s commitment to refrain from installing more US-made anti-ballistic missile systems after South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin appeared to back away from the policy on Monday.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said on Thursday that, in opposing the expansion of Seoul’s Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) system, Beijing was not targeting South Korea, but Washington’s “ill intent to damage China’s strategic security”.

Zhao’s comments came after Park spoke at a parliamentary hearing on Monday, when he said there were insufficient strategic dialogues between China and South Korea despite their historical relationship.

Seoul installed the THAAD launchers in 2017, sparking strong disapproval and retaliation from Beijing, which claimed that the system’s radar could be used to spy on China.

In exchange for the lifting of unofficial economic sanctions by China, former South Korean president Moon Jae-in in 2017 accepted a “three noes” agreement, which blocked Seoul from expanding its anti-ballistic missile systems, joining a region-wide US missile defence system and entering a military alliance with the US and Japan.

According to the Yonhap News Agency, Park said during the hearing that Moon’s policy on THAAD was not a commitment to China or a formal agreement between the two sides, but a statement of South Korea’s own position.

Zhao said that Moon’s position on THAAD played a key role in enhancing mutual trust and deepening cooperation between the two countries. He said “new officials cannot ignore past debts”, urging South Korea to “act prudently” and “seek fundamental solutions”.