Farmer Shin Jeong-geun speaks to journalists about the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) in Seongju county, South Korea, Aug. 2, 2016. It is not difficult to feel how deeply and severely locals are enraged at their government, which agreed with the United States to deploy Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) in their hometown. Banners expressing opposition to the U.S. missile defense system are found almost everywhere inside the Seongju county, in which one THAAD battery is set to be installed by the end of next year. Oriental melon farming is an economic mainstay of the county, which yields more than 70 percent of the country's total melon crops. THAAD's X-band radar is known to emit super-strong microwave detrimental to human body. It also causes an environmental hazard, boosting concerns about the farming in Seongju. (Xinhua/Yao Qilin)
