The deployment of a US anti-missile system in South Korea would boost the country's security as it would help counter possible threats form the North, a spokesman for the South Korean Defense Ministry said on Friday.
"Our government will consider every measure to prepare against North Korea's missile threats… If U.S. Forces Korea deploys THAAD, it will help our national security and defense," Kim Min-seok said, as quoted by the Yonhap news agency.
According to Kim, Washington has not offered Seoul any negotiations on the issue yet. However he added that the deployment was under discussion within the US government.
On January 6, North Korea announced it had successfully tested a hydrogen bomb, a move which triggered international condemnation for a provocative move destabilizing the region.
On January 13, South Korean President Park Geun-hye said that the deployment of THAAD systems in the country could be discussed, because of nuclear and missile threat from Pyongyang.
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Another Pyongyang Missile Test Could Lead to'Cycle of Escalation'
Washington (Sputnik) – Japanese media reported on Wednesday that satellite imagery indicated North Korea was preparing to test-launch a long-range missile. Earlier this month, Pyongyang tested a nuclear weapon, inciting outrage from the United States and new economic sanctions.
"We are concerned that additional North Korean provocations could heighten tensions, lead to a cycle of escalation and threaten the peace and stability on the Peninsula," Urban said on Thursday.
The spokesman added that the United States is urging North Korea to "refrain from actions and rhetoric that threaten regional peace and security and focus instead on taking concrete steps toward fulfilling its international commitments and obligations."
The US intelligence community and NORTHCOM have assessed that Pyongyang has the capability of hitting the United States with a long-range ballistic missile, and takes the threat of a nuclear-armed North Korea seriously.
