China ready to neutralise THAAD, retired PLA general says

The military will deploy its own system before Seoul sets up the American one, Wang Hongguang says

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The US-made Terminal High Altitude Area Defence system is being deployed in the Seongju region, southeast of Seoul. Photo: Reuters

Published: 11:00pm, 13 Mar 2017Updated: 2:28pm, 14 Mar 2017

China knew it might not be able to stop Seoul deploying a US anti-missile system and was prepared to counter with its own anti-radar equipment, a retired PLA general said on Monday.

The comments by Wang Hongguang came as a South Korean court’s decision to uphold the impeachment of Park Geun-hye, the country’s former president, fanned hopes Seoul might put plans for the Terminal High Altitude Area Defence system on hold.

Park supported the installation of the system to help protect South Korea against threats from North Korea, which Beijing says can peer through China’s defences.

Wang, former deputy commander of the Nanjing Military Region, said China could not take the chance the next South Korean president would change policy and roll back the deployment.

The first THAAD components arrived at the Osan Air Base in South Korea last week.

Equipment for the US-backed missile defence shield arrives at Osan Air Base, south of Seoul, last week. Photo: Xinhua

Wang said Beijing had measures in place to neutralise THAAD’s radars. “We will complete our deployment before THAAD begins operations. There is no need to wait for two months [before the election of the next South Korean president],” he said on the sidelines of the political sessions in Beijing. “We already have such equipment in place. We just have to move it to the right spot.”