[Yonhap Photo]
South Korea started fencing around a golf course Tuesday to build a military site for the deployment of an advanced US missile shield after signing a land swap deal with Lotte, the country's fifth-largest conglomerate.
The defense ministry said it would soon hold talks with US troops on installing a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system in Lotte's hillside golf course in Seongju some 200 kilometers (124 miles) southeast of Seoul.
US military engineers are responsible for transforming the area to install a THAAD battery, ministry spokesman Moon Sang- gyun told reporters. The area will be used by some 28,000 US troops stationed in South Korea under a mutual defense pact dating back to the 1950-53 Korean War.
"We will step up efforts to persuade China persistently," he said, referring to bitter protests by China.
Beijing said the US missile shield would "seriously" hurt strategic interests of China and other countries as well as the security balance in Northeast Asia.
"China has stressed time and again that it understands the reasonable security concerns of certain parties, but one country's security should not come at the expense of another," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said Monday.
Opposition parties and civic groups sided with Beijing, insisting the US missile shield would escalate tension in and around the Korean Peninsula
Residents around the golf course called for regular protests to block the installation of a US THAAD battery which normally consists of six truck-mounted launchers, 48 interceptors, a fire control and communications unit, and a powerful X-band radar.
On July 13, a military base near a rural town in Seongju was picked to deploy a THAAD battery. The decision was scrapped later because of protests by residents who argued their town would be the target of North Korean missile attacks and accused the THAAD battery of emitting strong electromagnetic waves.
Along with health and environmental problems, the US missile shield sparked concern about China's economic retaliation.
Lotte was extremely cautious, reserving any comment after Chinese media warned it would face strong retaliatory steps such as a buyer's strike from angry Chinese consumers and tourists.
The retail giant heavily depends on Chinese consumers and tourists. Last year, about 70 percent of income at its duty-free stores came from Chinese visitors. Total sales at Lotte's business outlets in China were estimated at 3.2 trillion won (2.8 billion US dollars).
Since the land swap deal was proposed in September last year, Lotte's business in China has been in trouble.
Lim Chang-won = cwlim34@ajunews.com
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
