South Korea takes another big step towards THAAD deployment

By Alex Jensen

SEOUL

South Korea’s Lotte Group accepted a land deal Monday that will allow Seoul to push ahead with its planned deployment of an American anti-missile defense system, according to the South’s defense ministry -- despite continued signs of Chinese opposition to the move.

After months of implicit threats and counter-measures from Beijing, the board of an affiliate of South Korea’s fifth-largest conglomerate decided anyway to swap a golf course nearly 300 kilometers (186 miles) south of Seoul for a military site closer to the capital.

“We have received a notice from Lotte Group that the company has given the green light to the land exchange plan with the military,” the ministry said in a statement following a painstaking process to find a suitable location for the American THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) system.

The group had been expected to agree to the swap by January but appeared to waver under warning signals that were made explicit by Chinese state media this month.

Lotte has seen construction projects falter and already relies on income from more than 150 Chinese retail branches.

Local news agency Yonhap reported that the military will streamline the process with a view to installing THAAD within three months.

The timing is crucial because December’s presidential election could be brought forward to May if impeached South Korean leader Park Geun-hye is ousted by the Constitutional Court.

The final hearing of her impeachment trial was held Monday, setting up an expected two-week deliberation period.

Polls suggest Park could well be succeeded by a liberal president less sympathetic to THAAD, which has been criticized by left-leaning lawmakers as an unnecessary source of friction with Beijing.

After months of restrictions on trade and cultural imports, China continues to demonstrate apparent displeasure with what it sees as a threat posed by THAAD, even though Seoul and Washington insist the system is a defensive step aimed at North Korea.

With the wild popularity of South Korean dramas drawing in billions of views in China alone, Beijing is continuing to block entertainment shows from social media and video sharing platforms according to sources cited by Yonhap Monday.