National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster: U.S. Adhere To Agreements Andl Pay For Missile Defense In South Korea

Reuters: South Korea says U.S. reaffirms it will pay THAAD costs; joint drills wrap up

South Korea said the United States had reaffirmed it would shoulder the cost of deploying the THAAD anti-missile system, days after President Donald Trump said Seoul should pay for the $1-billion battery designed to defend against North Korea.

In a telephone call on Sunday, Trump's national security adviser, H.R. McMaster, reassured his South Korean counterpart, Kim Kwan-jin, that the U.S. alliance with South Korea was its top priority in the Asia-Pacific region, the South's presidential office said.

The conversation followed another North Korean missile test-launch on Saturday which Washington and Seoul said was unsuccessful, but which drew widespread international condemnation.

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WNU Editor: The U.S. will pay for the deployment .... but National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster is indicating that in the future this will change when the deal is negotiated.

More News On The U.S. Committing To Pay For The South Korean Deployment of THAAD

McMaster says US will pay for THAAD anti-missile system in South Korea -- FOX News
National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster: U.S. will pay for missile defense in South Korea -- Washington Times
McMaster: U.S. will adhere to Korean missile defense deal 'until any renegotiation' -- Politico
McMaster to South Korea: US will pay for missile defense system -- The Hill
South Korea Says McMaster Affirms THAAD Funding Deal Unchanged: Official -- NBC

A Look At America's THAAD System

THAAD: America's Super Shield against Ballistic Missiles? -- Dan Sauter, National Interest

Editor’s Note: TNI’s Managing Editor, Harry J. Kazianis, spoke with Dan Sauter of the Business Development for Terminal High Altitude Area Defense at Lockheed Martin about the various advantages of the THAAD defense system and how it could help deal with emerging security threats in the Asia-Pacific.

Kazianis: For our readers who might not be familiar with THAAD or Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, could we begin by you giving TNI readers a basic description of the system and how it works? What makes it unique? Why is it in America's interest to have such a system?

Sauter: THAAD is a key element of the U.S. Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS) and is designed to defend U.S. troops, allied forces, population centers and critical infrastructure against short-thru-medium-range ballistic missiles. THAAD has a unique capability to destroy threats in both the endo- and exo-atmosphere using proven hit-to-kill (kinetic energy) lethality. THAAD is effective against all types of ballistic-missile warheads, especially including Weapons of Mass Destruction (chemical, nuclear or biological) payloads.

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A THAAD missile is launched toward a short-range ballistic missile target on Oct. 5, 2011, during a test of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system at the Pacific Missile Range Facility on Kauai, Hawaii. (Missile Defense Agency)

Lockheed’s Thaad Missile Defense Hits Two Targets in Test -- Bloomberg

Oct. 5 (Bloomberg) -- Lockheed Martin Corp.’s Thaad Missile Defense System successfully intercepted two targets in a test over Hawaii early today, the U.S. Missile Defense Agency said.

The test marked the first time the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system detected and struck two different targets using two interceptors, Lockheed Martin said in a press release.

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More News On Today's Successful Missile Defense Test

THAAD missiles intercept two targets in first 'operational' test of system -- al.com
Missile defense system hits 2 targets over Hawaii -- Yahoo News/AP
THAAD Eliminates Two Missile Targets in Test -- Global Security Newswire
THAAD missile system intercepts 2 targets -- UPI
Breaking News: THAAD Shoots Down Multiple Missiles -- MDAA

Missile Defense Test Aborted

THADD Launcher

From Signs On San Diego:

HONOLULU – The U.S. military aborted an attempt to shoot down an incoming missile with two interceptors Wednesday after the target malfunctioned shortly after launch off Kauai.

It was the first breakdown after five successful tests of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system, or THAAD. Four of the successful test had been conducted with launches from the Pacific Missile Range at Barking Sands and one from White Sands, N.M.

The Missile Defense Agency says because of the failure, the two THAAD interceptor missiles that were to take part in the test were not launched. So the full test was never completed.

It was the second time a target missile had failed, resulting in a scrapping of the interceptor launch, leaving the test missiles available for future tests. The first failure was early on in the tests, which began at White Sands in 2005.

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My Comment: With each test, more and more info and development occurs. Twenty years ago, politicians who opposed President Reagan's Star Wars initiative were laughing at the concept of missiles being shot down .... today .... this is no longer laughed at. One can only wonder what the next 10 to 20 years will bring.

Recycling Those Petro-Dollars

U.S. Plans $7 Billion Missile-Defense Sale To UAE -- Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Bush administration is planning to sell the United Arab Emirates an advanced U.S. missile defense system valued at up to $7 billion that could be used to defend against Iran, people who have attended briefings on the matter said on Monday.

The Pentagon is set to notify the U.S. Congress of the proposed sale, which would be the first of the so-called Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, several people familiar with the matter said.

THAAD is built by Lockheed Martin Corp. Raytheon Co supplies the system's radar.

Once notified of such a proposed arms sale by the administration, Congress has 30 days to review it but almost never blocks.

In any case, deployment of the THAAD system is "at least months away" and could take more than a year, said a congressional staff member familiar with the matter.

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More Info: Missile Defense Scores ... Finally -- Defense Tech

My Comment: This weapon system is still in the developmental stage. It appears that a good number of people are confident that it will work, and that it is money well spent.