DEPLOYMENT OF THAAD IN S. KOREA WILL INVITE NEW COLD WAR: KCNA COMMENTARY

Pyongyang, July 16 (KCNA) -- The final decision to deploy THAAD in south Korea, being part of the U.S. moves for building a global missile shield, is sparking serious concern of the international community.

The U.S. is taking much pain to calm down the backlash of the countries around the Korean peninsula by making such far-fetched assertion that THAAD to be operated in south Korea is "defensive means" to cope with the "nuclear and missile threat" from the DPRK.

But, with no rhetoric can it cover up its aggressive nature as a harasser of global peace and stability.

The U.S. THAAD deployment is a risky military move that may bring a new Cold War to Asia-Pacific as it is aimed to upset the regional strategic balance and contain China and Russia by force directly.

It is the U.S. ulterior purpose to neutralize the attack capability of rapidly developing Asian countries, specifically the regional powers, through its missile shield and thus hold political, economic and military hegemony in the region.

THAAD deployment in south Korea is directly linked to the full-scale execution of the U.S. strategy for dominating Asia-Pacific.

The deployment of THAAD plays as the catalyst for sparking off a fiercer arms race and a new Cold War in Asia-Pacific. No wonder, regional powers are channelling efforts into bolstering their military muscle to counter the deployment, keeping high vigilance and expressing deep concern over it.

China and Russia have launched an all-out offensive to get the deployment plan retracted, asserting that THAAD would upset the strategic balance in the region and wantonly violate their strategic security.

They are also pressing ahead with their immediate missile programs such as redeployment of armed forces to strike designated targets in the light of the range of THAAD.

This being a stark reality, the U.S. has gone as foolish as to try to deceive someone by asserting that THAAD deployment is an "inevitable choice" under the situation where various type rockets possessed by the Korean People's Army and their test-fires pose a "serious threat" to the security of south Korea and other parts of Asia-Pacific.

Andrei Vinogradov, chief of the center for political study and forecast of the Institute of the Far East of the Russian Academy of Sciences, commented that it is no more than a lame excuse for the U.S. to claim THAAD is to protect south Korea from the threat of the DPRK.

Recalling when the deployment of the missile shield in Europe was under discussion, the U.S. claimed that it was to cope with the threat from Iran; he noted that the nuclear deal with Iran has been clinched but the building of a missile shield is still underway in Romania and Poland.

The same can be said of THAAD deployment in south Korea, he added. The U.S. is sadly mistaken if it thinks that the world today would change, pursuant to its subjective ambition. The U.S. can never realize its scenario to maintain its military edge and materialize its hegemonic desire in Asia-Pacific while getting frantic in war drills, arms build-up and building of a military bloc after designating the DPRK as a primary target of its attack.

As THAAD openly targets the DPRK, the enemy will never be able to get rid of the striking range of the Korean People's Army. Fully equipped with cutting-edge offensive strike means, the Korean People's Army will never remain a passive on-lookers to the prevailing situation whereby the Korean peninsula is being reduced to a theatre of muscle-flexing among big powers and an igniting point of a new world war.

The deployment of THAAD will only result in justifying the DPRK's exercise of its right to self-defence and precipitating the miserable end of the war maniacs.