China, Russia submit statement to U.N. opposing THAAD deployment in S. Korea: VOA

SEOUL, July 26 (Yonhap) -- China and Russia submitted a joint statement to the United Nations on July 8 opposing the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery in South Korea, the U.S.-based Voice of America (VOA) reported Tuesday.

According to the VOA report, the joint document was signed by Wu Haitao, China's deputy ambassador to the U.N., and Russian Ambassador to the U.N. Vitaly Churkin.

The document was attached with a joint statement signed by Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin on June 25.

In the statement, Xi and Putin said that the Aegis missile defense system being set up in parts of the world, as well as the deployment of THAAD, will severely infringe upon their strategic security interest in some countries.

On July 8, South Korea and the United States officially announced their decision to deploy THAAD on the Korean Peninsula.

The VOA said China and Russia hope their joint statement will be circulated at the U.N. General Assembly and the U.N. Security Council.

China and Russia have blasted Seoul and Washington over their decision to deploy the advanced missile defense system, which some analysts warn would trigger a new round of an arms race in Northeast Asia and push China closer to North Korea.

But South Korea and the U.S. said the THAAD system will enhance "the security of the South and its people, and to protect alliance's military forces from North Korea's weapons of mass destruction."

Besides firing off long-range missiles, the North from 2006 onwards conducted four nuclear tests with the latest taking place in January of this year.
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