Washington's THAAD muscle flexing unmasks anxiety over declining hegemony

Last week's lower-than-expected US GDP data in the second quarter of 2016 continued to point to a significant loss of momentum that puts the economy at risk of stalling in a country that has seen growing anti-free trade sentiments.

More pertinently, it is the United States' declining military supremacy that constitutes the main driver behind its THAAD muscle flexing.

Deploying THAAD in the ROK is a crucial step to healing the Achilles heel of Washington's anti-missile missile system in the Asia Pacific, which has long been nagged by its inadequate recognition ability.

With the help of THAAD's X band radar, the United States can effectively and immediately raise recognition accuracy.

But this strategic upper hand comes at the cost of the security interests of other nations in northeast Asia.

Already, the DPRK has threatened to take "physical countermeasures" to deal with THAAD, which Pyongyang says would only exacerbate tension in the region, encourage a new arms race and even provoke another Cold War.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang also warned last month that China will take necessary measures to safeguard its own interests if the United States and ROK don't stop the deployment.

The United States is highly advised to stop building its own security at the cost of the security of other countries. The nearsighted actions will only destabilize the strategic balance and stability in northeast Asia, giving Washington more things to worry about.