SEOUL, South Korea — Amid alarm over North Korea’s expanding nuclear weapons and missile arsenal, Washington and Seoul are speeding ahead with the installment of an advanced US anti-missile system in South Korea to cope with the growing threats. Here’s a look at how THAAD works and why it became a debated issue in South Korea. ADVERTISEMENTSystem protects against midrange missilesA THAAD battery, including the one currently being installed in southern South Korea, consists of six truck-mounted launchers that can fire up to 48 interceptor missiles. South Korea has raised suspicions that China is retaliating against plans for THAAD by limiting Chinese tour group visits to South Korea, whose economy is increasingly dependent on Chinese tourism and demand for its industrial products. They say there’s little reason to reconfigure the THAAD radar in South Korea to a “forward-based mode” when that would disable the system from intercepting incoming missiles.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer April 26, 2017 09:11 UTC