WASHINGTON (AP) – If China was hoping for a concession from the U.S. after recently suspending coal imports from cash-poor North Korea, it got the opposite.
The U.S. is starting to deploy a missile defense system in South Korea which the allies say is needed to defend against North Korea. But China and North Korea view it as a threat.
That adds to strains in the high-stakes relationship between Washington and Beijing weeks into Donald Trump’s presidency. And it could further complicate cooperation between the two world powers in combating something they both oppose – North Korea’s nuclear program.
The U.S. military said Tuesday it has started bringing in equipment for the deployment of the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense system, or THAAD. It says the system is designed to intercept and destroy short and medium-range ballistic missiles during the last part of their flights.
The announcement came after North Korea on Monday launched four ballistic missiles into ocean off Japan – a show of force in response to annual U.S.-South Korean military drills. The allies say they are routine but Pyongyang views them as rehearsal for an invasion.