Russia and China Cooperate on THAAD

Russia and China cooperate on a lot more than most people realize.  They have signed at least 32 private agreements and we don't even know what most of them are about.  This time, they have come together on getting the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense anti-missile system, which both oppose in South Korea. 

Only China really cares about this system put in South Korea.  The Chinese say its radar can see secret things inside China and is a danger to its national security.  Their claim is not supported by any facts, as their claims often aren't.  I had 9 years in Missile Defense and it is a really good radar, but nothing like the Chinese make it out to be.  This is a weak argument, but that has not stopped them before.  More than likely something else is behind the teeth gnashing. 

The Chinese managed to get Russian support and want to threaten South Korea to get them to back down from keeping it operational.  As long as North Korea is threatening a missile attack, it is a good thing to have in the South.  As to China, there is only one unit of THAAD in South Korea so it isn't going to do well against a large-scale attack.  China doesn't even need ballistic missiles to hit South Korea if they wanted to do it, and they probably don't.  China doesn't want those missiles, which are pretty accurate in tests, to be deployed anywhere in their area.  Imagine if we put some of them in Taiwan, the Philippines, and a few other little countries around China.  It would make some interesting defenses for the countries just outside the 9-dash line.  That is something the Chinese do not want. 

China's problem on occasion is she makes up her mind about something and keep moving towards the objective until it is met.  Even where things change, they stay on the path using all of their resources.  That is a tough ship to turn.  If North Korea decides to show more action to denuclearize, it might be worth reconsidering THAAD.  That is many years away.  We don't need to hurry any faster than China and North Korea.   Start looking for more countries that will accept it.