(MENAFN- Qatar News Agency) Seoul, July 08 (QNA) - South Korea and the United States said on Friday they will deploy an advanced missile defense system with U.S. military forces stationed in South Korea to counter North Korea''s missile threat, drawing sharp and swift protest from neighboring China.
The Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) anti-missile system will be used only to counter the threat from the North, the South''s Defence Ministry and the U.S. Defence Department said in a joint statement.
The selection of the location for the system could come "within weeks" and the allies were working to have it operational by the end of 2017, a South Korean defense ministry official said.
"South Korea and the United States made an alliance decision to deploy THAAD to USFK as a defensive measure to ensure the security of the South and its people, and to protect alliance military forces from North Korea''s weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile threats," the joint statement said.
USFK stands for U.S. Forces Korea, which includes 28,500 U.S. troops based in South Korea.
"When the THAAD system is deployed to the Korean Peninsula, it will be focused solely on North Korean nuclear and missile threats and would not be directed towards any third party nations," the statement said. (QNA)