China pressures South Korea about missile system

Moon plans to announce major cabinet and presidential staff appointments nearly immediately to bring a swift end a power vacuum left by the removal of his predecessor, Park Geun-hye, in a corruption scandal in March.

Abe and Moon will speak by phone as early as Thursday.

Ahead of the swearing-in, Moon met leading lawmakers of Park’s Liberty Korea party – which has repeatedly accused him of being a Pyongyang sympathiser – to “beg” for their cooperation.

Washington wants to increase pressure on Pyongyang through further isolation and sanctions, in contrast to Moon’s advocacy for greater engagement with the isolated North. Beijing hopes that the new South Korean government attaches importance to China’s major concerns and takes real steps to promote the healthy and stable development of ties, Xi said.

Singapore and the Republic of Korea share similar views on many important issues in the region and internationally.

After months of political turmoil and the impeachment of President Park Guen-hye, Moon will seek to restore domestic political stability.

In one of his first acts as president, Moon spoke by telephone with Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Lee Sun-jin. Solid national security comes from strong national defense power.

Final results showed Moon winning decisively, with the highest turnout in 20 years despite drizzly weather in South Korea.

Beijing opposes the system, arguing that its radar systems allow the USA and South Korea to spy on nearby Chinese military, and has imposed unofficial sanctions on South Korean companies operating in China.

Trump and Moon agreed to continue to work toward strengthening relations between the two countries. The son of North Korean refugees, Moon also takes over the leadership mantle amid rising tensions on the Korean peninsula over Pyongyang’s nuclear programme.

Toby Dalton of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace has graphically represented this drift between administrations. The U.S. side comprised Suzanne DiMaggio at the New America think tank, former United Nations ambassador Thomas Pickering, retired four-star Adm. William Fallon and former State Department nuclear negotiator Robert Einhorn.

FILE – Visitors look at products made at the Kaesong Industrial Complex in North Korea at its showroom at the unification observatory in Paju, South Korea, Feb. 10, 2016. The missile defense system, which Moon had criticized strongly before declaring his candidacy for the presidency, was rushed in and deployed in the first days of May.

But while North Korea may welcome a controlled boost in economic ties and maybe a bilateral summit in its capital, its primary concern is always national security, or more precisely the assurance of regime survival.

Moon has said the decision was made hastily and his government should have the final say, but analysts say it would be hard to remove THAAD now it has been deployed.

President Donald Trump is extending an invitation to the new president of South Korea.

Moon’s pick for National Intelligence Service chief is Suh Hoon, a longtime intelligence official Moon said would be the right man to push reforms at NIS, which has always been accused of meddling in domestic politics. Moons victory will nearly certainly slam the door shut on any military option against North Korea for the Trump administration.

In short, Moon talks the talk, and today he’ll become the leader of South Korea.