The International Business Times:
South Korea announced Tuesday it would test the electromagnetic waves coming from the powerful radar used in the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system again. The move comes amid concerns that there could be serious health issues associated with the equipment.
A similar test of the electromagnetic waves generated from the X-band radar system was conducted last Monday at the U.S. military base in Guam. The test concluded that the radar waves posed no health risks to the local population living near the military facility. However, the 45,000 residents of Seongju, about 184 miles southeast of Seoul — the county where the U.S. missile defense system is scheduled to be installed — rejected the test results, South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency reported.
“In the upcoming evaluation on the THAAD battery’s environmental impact, we will conduct the same test again to ensure that the anti-missile system does not pose any major health risks to Seongju residents in a reasonable and subjective manner,” Moon Sang-gyun, a South Korean defense ministry spokesman, reportedly said in a statement.
Earlier this month, South Korea’s Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn, along with Defense Minister Han Min-koo, visited Seongju to convince local residents to accept the deployment of the THAAD system in the region. The attempt, however, failed with locals reportedly throwing eggs and water bottles at the officials.
