Chinese state media has slammed the U.S. for setting the stage for the North Korean crisis, which has deepened after Pyongyang launched a satellite using ballistic missile technology, in the aftermath of a nuclear test.
A commentary in the People’s Daily , the official organ of the Communist Party of China (CPC), accused Washington of using the nuclear issue “as an excuse” for starting formal talks with South Korea on placing the Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD), an anti-missile system, on North Korea's door step.
Analysts say the talks have ignited Chinese concerns, because the radar, which is part of the THAAD system, has a 1000 km range.
Depending on where it is deployed, the THAAD system can easily pry into Chinese airspace and potentially neutralise overflying Chinese ballistic missiles in a future conflict scenario.
“The possible THAAD system in South Korea will directly threaten China’s strategic and security interests and lead to a security imbalance in northeast Asia and the Asia-Pacific region, which could spark strategic rebalancing across a wider range,” the write-up observed.
The commentary cited three points to make its case regarding Washington’s intent. First, the article stressed that it was not North Korea but the U.S. that sparked the nuclear crisis on the Korean peninsula.
Second, with the U.S.- South Korea Mutual Defence Treaty as cover, Washington has risked peninsular security with a spill-over effect on northeast Asia and the Asia-Pacific region at large. Third, the commentary accused the U.S. of pursuing double standards.
“The U.S. is a stakeholder of the peninsular issue, yet it applies entirely different policies to the northern and southern parts.
On the one hand it put enormous pressure on North Korea, but on the other offered a guarantee of safety to South Korea. Such acts will by no means ease the tension.”
The daily, citing “lack of contact” with Pyongyang that allowed tensions to spiral, then went on to doubt Washington’s core sincerity in resolving the North Korean crisis. “The stance that the U.S. holds on the peninsular issue is clearly self-contradictory.”
The commentary warned the U.S. that it should learn that “when you lift a rock, it could land on your own feet”.
