THAAD in S. Korea is now operational: report

WASHINGTON -- The US THAAD missile defense system installed in South Korea is now operational, a US defense official was quoted Monday as saying.

"It has reached initial intercept capability," the unidentified official told AFP.

The THAAD battery has been deployed in southeastern South Korea to defend better against North Korean threats, despite Chinese pretests that the system hurts its strategic deterrence.

The battery has also been a focus of attention after US President Donald Trump demanded last week that South Korea should pay for the $1 billion system, despite a deployment agreement that calls for the US to pay for it as long as the South agrees to host the system and provides land for it.

The US later said it will abide by the agreement "until any renegotiation" of it. (Yonhap)