Anchor: A group of U.S. congressmen introduced a resolution denouncing North Korea for the first time since the inauguration of the Donald Trump administration. While expressing concerns over the North Korean ballistic missile program, the American lawmakers called for responding to the threat with the planned THAAD deployment. 
Kim Bum-soo reports. 
 
Report: A group of U.S. House lawmakers has introduced a resolution condemning North Korea for its development of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM).
 
In the resolution (H.Res.92), both Republican and Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday called for quick deployment of the U.S. THAAD missile defense system in South Korea.
 
Rep. Joe Wilson and the four cosponsors said in the resolution that the U.S. reaffirms support for a layered, interoperable, multi-tier missile defense system to protect Americans and allies on the Korean Peninsula.
 
In a separate hearing, the U.S. House also warned over the seriousness of the North Korean threats.
 
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce said North Korea’s nuclear and missile development is picking up speed, expressing concerns that it can be a game-changer for U.S. security interests.  
 
[Sound bite: House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce]
“ ...and the fact also that North Korea has this history of proliferating, you know they get their ICBM technology or they get their ability to create a nuclear bomb and they sell that!"
 
At the hearing, Victor Cha, chair of Korea studies at the U.S. Center for Strategic and International Studies(CSIS) predicted there is a high likelihood the North will wage additional provocation in the early stages of the Trump administration.
 
[Sound bite: Victor Cha - Chair of Korea studies, Center for Strategic and International Studies(CSIS)]
“The purpose would be to demonstrate advancements in their technology, and to assert a position of strength that would put the President on his back heels.”
 
White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said in a briefing Tuesday that the North Korean threat is the most prominent issue that faces the South Korea-U.S. alliance.
 
Many American experts have suggested THAAD antimissile system should be deployed this year as scheduled given the ongoing political crisis in South Korea. 
 
The controversy among South Koreans over the planned THAAD deployment is expected to heat up in the months to come.
Kim Bum-soo, KBS World Radio News. 

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