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Moscow says US missile defense to impair solution of nuclear problem on Korean peninsula

The US Armed Forces are researching possibilities of deploying THAAD batteries in a number of provinces in South Korea
USS Shiloh, Aegis guided missile cruiser of the US Navy at a naval base in the South Korean port city of Busan EPA/YONHAP
USS Shiloh, Aegis guided missile cruiser of the US Navy at a naval base in the South Korean port city of Busan
© EPA/YONHAP

MOSCOW, March 24. /TASS/. Likely deployment of a US missile defense in South Korea might complicate the solution of the Korean peninsula’s nuclear problem, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday.

The Foreign Ministry drew attention to the ongoing discussion in Seoul over the possibility the country might host US anti-missile complexes THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense). The discussion is proceeding against the backdrop of research being carried out by the US Armed Forces in the Republic of Korea into the possibility of deploying THAAD batteries in a number of provinces. "The possibility of the US global missile defense’s further geographic expansion is taking real shape," the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

"The possibility of this march of events cannot but breed alarm in view of the destructive effects of the US global missile defence on international security and global stability," the Russian Foreign Ministry said. "The region where the security situation is a no easy one may see the emergence of one more annoyance capable of triggering an arms race in Northeast Asia and to further complicate the solution of the Korean Peninsula’s nuclear problem."

"It is to be hoped that all-round analysis of the effects the emergence of global missile defence components on Korean soil will entail will enable Seoul to carefully evaluate if US interceptor missiles and radars have more cons than pros," the Russian Foreign Ministry said.