A group of opposition lawmakers, who visited China this week to discuss the planned deployment of an advanced U.S. anti-missile system to South Korea, defended their controversial trip Thursday, saying it helped bilateral diplomatic relations.Six first-term lawmakers of the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea (MPK) visited Beijing from Monday to Wednesday to discuss with Chinese officials and scholars the plan to deploy a Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense battery to the peninsula by end-2017

China and Russia should welcome the decision to deploy the U.S. THAAD missile defense system in South Korea because it helps lessen the need for Seoul to seek other defense options, including development of its own nuclear weapons, a U.S. expert said Wednesday.Richard Weitz, director of the Center for Political-Military Analysis at the Hudson Institute in Washington, made the point in an article, titled "Better THAAD than Dead," arguing that South Korea has ample reasons to shore up defense and

South Korea's military said Wednesday it is always open to dialogue with residents opposed to the deployment of an advanced missile defense shield, over health risks linked to its powerful radar. "We have no reasons to reject talks with Seongju residents over the THAAD deployment. There seems to be a consensus in Seongju in the making for talks with the government. Once they decide to have a dialogue, they said they will contact us," an official at the Ministry of National Defense said.Earlier t

The United States deployed three B-2 stealth bombers to Guam on Tuesday, the Strategic Command said, as tensions are running high on the Korean Peninsula in the wake of North Korea's latest missile launches.The nuclear-capable bombers, which were deployed from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri, will conduct local and regional training sorties and integrate capabilities with key regional partners, ensuring bomber crews maintain a high state of readiness and crew proficiency, the command said in

The navies of South Korea and the United States agreed Thursday to bolster cooperation and information sharing, especially in anti-submarine warfare, in order to address threats across the region, the U.S. Navy said Thursday.Adm. Jung Ho-sub, South Korea's chief of naval operations, reached the agreement when he held talks with his U.S. counterpart, Adm. John Richardson, at the Pentagon, the Navy said in a release. "It's extremely important as we work together -- as our two navies work together

A recent decision by South Korea and the United States to place an advanced missile defense system on Korean soil is aimed at countering threats from North Korea, a government official said Thursday, saying that it's regrettable to see criticism by a Chinese state-run newspaper not based on objective facts.In an editorial dated on Wednesday, People's Daily claimed that the planned deployment of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system poses a serious threat to China's strategic security inte