China Blocks South Korean TV in Dispute Over Missile Defense

Chinese cable television companies have cut off access to South Korean programming in a move by Beijing to punish Seoul for installing a missile defense system aimed at North Korea, but which China says threatens its own security, sources say.

The blocking of South Korean drama and news shows follows earlier measures taken to show China’s displeasure over the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system being deployed in South Korea in the wake of Pyongyang’s test launch of ballistic missiles.


Boycotts of South Korean goods and services have spread across China in recent weeks, with Chinese travel agents also halting group tours to South Korea and Chinese hotels turning away South Korean guests, sources say.

Now, Chinese authorities have blocked access in China to popular South Korean broadcasting, a source in Yanji city in China’s Jilin province told RFA’s Korean Service.

“They have blocked South Korean television channels because of the THAAD deployment dispute,” RFA’s source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

“It has been almost a month now since the channels were blocked, and we see no sign of getting them back,” he said.

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