The main opposition Liberty Korea Party said Thursday that it will send a delegation to the United States to drum up support for its drive for the redeployment of US tactical nuclear weapons to the Korean Peninsula.Rep. Kim Gwang-lim, the party's policy chief, said that the delegation will meet US politicians and journalists who share the need for the redeployment to counter escalating North Korean nuclear threats. Rep. Kim Gwang-lim (Yonhap)"The redeployment of the tactical nukes and the deploy

The possibility of any outright military conflicts on the Korean Peninsula remains low, but it has risen from "very low levels" after North Korea's latest nuclear test, global credit appraiser Moody's Investors Services said Thursday. Defying international warnings, North Korea conducted its sixth and most powerful nuclear test Sunday, claiming it was a hydrogen bomb that can be loaded onto a long-range missile. South Korea, the US and Japan are reportedly seeking tougher UN sanctions against No

South Korea's defense ministry announced Thursday the deployment of a THAAD missile defense system has been completed in a "tentative" step to counter urgent threats from North Korea.The announcement came soon after the US Forces Korea (USFK) transported four additional THAAD rocket launchers into its new base in Seongju, some 300 kilometers south of Seoul, despite fierce protests by local residents and activists. Thousands of police were mobilized to help clear the way for a convoy of USFK vehi

Four more interceptor launchers for a US missile defense system entered a southern military base Thursday after clashes between police and protesters that resulted in dozens of injuries.The arrival of the launchers and other equipment came some 14 months after Seoul and Washington decided to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system to Seongju, some 300 kilometers south of Seoul, to counter escalating North Korean threats. THAAD launchers enter US base (Yonhap)Clashes occurre

After US President Donald Trump’s recent tweets about his approval of selling military equipment to South Korea, a sense of uneasiness is growing here over what some see as the US leader’s attempts to use the ongoing security crisis as an opportunity to sell weapons. In a tweet posted Tuesday, Trump said he has allowed South Korea and Japan to purchase “a substantially increased amount” of sophisticated US military equipment to counter North Korea’s escalating nuclear and missile threats.  US Pr

Four more THAAD rocket launchers will be installed this week at the US missile defense base in South Korea, the Ministry of National Defense announced Wednesday.It said the US Forces Korea will position the launchers at its new base in Seongju, some 300 kilometers south of Seoul, on Thursday.The move comes after North Korea's recent string of ballistic missile and nuclear tests.The ministry stressed the urgency of mobilizing the assets, now stored at a nearby USFK compound, amid growing threats

Defense Ministry says four remaining launchers will be deployed Thursday

The US military will deploy additional missile interceptor launchers to its base in a southern town early Thursday despite strong opposition from residents and activists, according to local villagers. The residents' group in Seongju said Wednesday they have confirmed the information through various channels about the planned deployment of four launchers of the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense system at 2 a.m. on Thursday, in addition to two that are already installed."We think the authorities

A group of former lawmakers Wednesday joined a growing chorus of calls for the Moon Jae-in government to seek the redeployment of US tactical nuclear arms to counter North Korea's escalating threats.The Parliamentarians' Society of the Republic of Korea made the demand, stressing that Pyongyang's repeated nuclear tests have reaffirmed that dialogue is not an effective method to address the decades-old nuclear standoff.Since the North's sixth and most powerful nuclear test to date Sunday, calls h

The United States assured South Korea and Japan on Wednesday of full extended deterrence, based on both its conventional and nuclear arsenal, against North Korea.The US reaffirmed its "ironclad" security commitment for the key regional allies in a working-level video conference on the North's latest nuclear test, according to South Korea's defense ministry."In particular, the US stressed that its extended deterrence commitment will be guaranteed through all categories of military capabilities in

Defense chiefs of Seoul and Washington agreed on Tuesday to strengthen the regular deployment of US strategic military assets in response to North Korea's latest nuclear test.The South Korean defense ministry said Defense Minister Song Young-moo and US Defense Secretary James Mattis reached the agreement during their phone conversation Tuesday evening."The two defense chiefs agreed to strengthen the regular deployment of US strategic assets and joint military exercises on and around the Korean P

Defense policymakers and security experts from around the world gathered in Seoul on Wednesday for an annual forum, hosted by South Korea's defense ministry, amid growing concerns about North Korea's brinkmanship.The sixth Seoul Defense Dialogue brings together more than 500 participants from 38 countries, including dozens of vice ministerial officials.With the theme "Visions for Security Cooperation in an Age of Uncertainty," this year's SDD comes days after the North pressed ahead with a nucle

Faced with North Korea’s escalating nuclear and missile threats, South Korea is seeking to develop a ballistic missile capable of carrying warheads powerful enough to destroy the communist regime’s underground military facilities and wartime commands.　According to military sources familiar with the matter Tuesday, the government is considering a plan to build a new ground-to-ground ballistic missile that can reach the entire North Korea and load up to 2 tons of warheads. 　The measure was reveale

The main opposition Liberty Korea Party on Tuesday turned up pressure on the government to seek the redeployment of US tactical nuclear arms to counter escalating North Korean nuclear threats.During a general meeting with party lawmakers, LKP chief Hong Joon-pyo stressed that the conservative party has adopted the redeployment as its official line, which will also test the US' "will" to employ its nuclear umbrella in defense of its Asian ally.After the North conducted two tests of an intercontin

South Korea on Tuesday acknowledged the possibility of a need to purchase advanced US weapons systems in the future as part of efforts to enhance its deterrence against North Korean provocations but dismissed any immediate plan to spend "many billions of dollars" as suggested by Washington.In a short statement released after a telephone conversation between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and his US counterpart Donald Trump late Monday, the White House said the US president has provided "his