US Official: Washington Should Deploy THAAD Amid Pyongyang Missile Activity

The United States should deploy the THAAD anti-ballistic missile system to South Korea in response to North Korea’s recent nuclear and ballistic missile activity, Commander of US Forces Korea General Curtis Scaparrotti told members of the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — When asked whether he supported THAAD deployment to the region by Senator John McCain, Scaparrotti responded, "I do sir."

Earlier in the week, the Pentagon said that Washington and Seoul were planning to begin talks on deploying the THAAD anti-ballistic missile system to South Korea to defend the region against North Korea’s development of ballistic missiles capable of carrying nuclear weapons.

Commander of US Pacific Command Admiral Harry Harris told the committee that although he supports deploying "as much forces forward as possible" in response to Pyongyang’s recent activities, he was hesitant on considering the option of a second carrier strike group in Japan due to problems with costs and "political pieces" with Tokyo.