Seoul corrects Washington (and Trump) on weapons purchase
The White House said South Korea had bought arms for "billions of dollars". The official denial from Seoul. Military escalation condemned by Korean bishops.
Seoul (AsiaNews) - To counter North Korea's provocations, the South admits that it has spoken to the United States about possible purchases of advanced systems, but denies it has decided to spend "billions of dollars" as suggested by Washington.
Yesterday, on the sidelines of the UN emergency meeting following Pyongyang’s nuclear experiment the day before, there was a telephone conversation between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and his US counterpart, Donald Trump. The White House said the U.S. president has provided "his conceptual approval for the purchase of many billions of dollars' worth of military weapons and equipment" by South Korea.
Today, spokesman for South Korea's presidential office Cheong Wa Dae, said the U.S. appeared to be referring to the allies' earlier discussions on upgrading South Korea's own defense capabilities" including “discussions regarding U.S. support for the introduction of advanced weapons or technologies required by South Korea”. But yesterday there was no mention of these issues, nor the possible cost.
The tension on the Korean Peninsula is causing an escalation in arms sales, as often denounced by Catholic bishops in Korea. Japan, a pacifist country, has set a US $ 48 billion defense budget for next year.
Since becoming president, Moon has been trying to curb the purchase of weapons and blocked the installation of Thaad's anti-missile system, costing $ 800,000 per battery, to which his predecessor, Mrs Park Geun-Hye, had given her assent. According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, between 2010 and 2016, the United States sold $ 5 billion in weapons to South Korea.
Within the country, the opposition continues to press Moon to step up defenses and even demand the deployment of nuclear weapons, provided by the United States against the North. Yesterday, the Ministry of Defense of Seoul said that four more Thaad antimissilist systems will be installed.
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