U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Mark Lippert on Monday noted the need for Seoul and Washington to create an “official consultative mechanism” to discuss the U.S.’ potential deployment of an advanced missile defense asset to Korea.

But he said during his courtesy visit to Rep. Moon Jae-in, chief of the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy, that it is premature yet to publicly discuss the dispatch of the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense system, as Washington is still internally discussing it.

“Discussions are still ongoing within the U.S. government. As a Middle East nation also wants to install it (THAAD), the U.S. is discussing where to deploy it,” the ambassador was quoted as saying by NPAD spokesperson Kim Yung-rok.

“I think the allies need an official consultative mechanism like the one we have to discuss the transfer of wartime operational control.”

His remarks came a day after Seoul’s Defense Minister Han Min-koo mentioned the positive effects of THAAD on the security of South Korea.

“Given that our assets to respond to North Korea’s missile threats are limited, the deployment (of THAAD) would be helpful,” Han said in a meeting with reporters. “We will start discussions over it should Washington request the opening of bilateral talks.”

The THAAD issue has become a tricky diplomatic one as China and Russia expressed strong opposition to it, arguing that THAAD, a key asset of the U.S.’ multilayered missile shield, could potentially target it.

The U.S. has argued that THAAD is a purely defensive system, and that it would contribute to a layered missile defense system that would enhance the South Korea-U.S. alliance’s existing missile defense capabilities.

By Song Sang-ho (sshluck@heraldcorp.com)