People Power Party "Directly purchase THAAD to defend 20 million in the Seoul metropolitan area... Cost of 1.5 trillion won"

Yoon Seok-yeol, the presidential candidate of the People Power Party, is answering questions from reporters after finishing the announcement of political pledges at the party headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 27th. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] On the 31st, the People Power Party announced that it will purchase THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) to defend the Seoul metropolitan area from North Korea's missile threats and deploy it to the South Korean military.

The Global Vision Committee and the Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Headquarters under the People Power Party's presidential campaign headquarters held a press conference on the same day and stated, "The Yoon Suk-yeol administration will additionally deploy THAAD batteries to protect the lives and property of 20 million residents in the Seoul metropolitan area from North Korea's missile threats."

The committee added, "The THAAD battery deployed in Seongju has limitations in defending the metropolitan area," and "We will firmly protect the Seoul metropolitan area and northern Gyeonggi region from North Korea's missile threats with the additionally deployed THAAD. We will strengthen a multi-layered defense system covering high-altitude, medium-altitude, and low-altitude, including THAAD."

The People Power Party explained that the THAAD battery operated by the U.S. Forces Korea in Seongju, Gyeongbuk, has been criticized for not being able to defend the metropolitan area due to range limitations.

Yoon Suk-yeol, the People Power Party's presidential candidate, pledged to purchase THAAD from the United States and have the South Korean military operate it directly, with the committee estimating the cost to be about 1.5 trillion won.

Kim Sung-han, head of the Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Headquarters, said, "This does not mean that the U.S. Forces Korea will additionally deploy THAAD, but that we will purchase THAAD directly as a matter of self-defense."

Kim Yong-hyun, former Joint Chiefs of Staff Operations Headquarters member and part of the Global Vision Committee, explained, "The THAAD battery deployed in Seongju has a range of 200 km, so its interception range does not reach the metropolitan area, only up to the southern end of the metropolitan area," and added, "The deployment location has not been specifically decided yet, but it will be placed in a location that can defend the metropolitan area and northern Gyeonggi region."

Regarding the possibility of China's backlash, he said, "When THAAD was deployed in Seongju in 2017, China said it was a backlash against the deployment of U.S. Forces Korea's THAAD," and added, "In other words, if South Korea's military deploys THAAD on its own as a matter of self-defense, China has no grounds to oppose it."

Earlier, candidate Yoon wrote "additional THAAD deployment" on Facebook the day before. Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, criticized, "Installing additional THAAD despite China's retaliation is irresponsible. If war breaks out, the young people will die."

In response to Lee's criticism, Park Jin, chairman of the Global Vision Committee, rebutted, "The THAAD defense system is not offensive but defensive and interceptive," and said, "If the other side picks on even my defense means to create military tension, we should respond firmly rather than blindly appeasing the other side, which is a pathetic idea."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.