With the developments North Korea has made in its ballistic missile program in the past several years, ballistic missile defense has become a high priority for both South Korea and the United States. While both can agree that defending against the missile threat is critical, the U.S. and the Republic of Korea (South Korea) have had differing opinions regarding the depth and scope of that defense.

The Theater High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile interceptor has been at the center of that disagreement over the past several months, but it is only one potential component of South Korea’s missile defense scheme.