New | Jack Nicklaus-designed golf course chosen for US missile defence system in South Korea

A Jack Nicklaus-designed golf course in South Korea was picked Friday as the new site for a US missile system aimed at defending the country from any North Korean attack.

The decision comes after more than two months of protests over the original plan to locate Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense, known as Thaad, in the mountainous county of Seongju more than 200 kilometers (125 miles) southeast of Seoul. The missile defence system will now be located nearby at the Lotte Group’s Skyhill Country Club, according to South Korea’s Defense Ministry.

The move, just weeks after Kim Jong Un’s regime conducted its fifth nuclear test, may appease some villagers who fiercely opposed putting Thaad in Seongju due to concerns over how its powerful radars would impact their health. Even so, President Park Geun-hye’s administration still faces other obstacles to moving ahead with the defence system.

Park was scheduled to host a luncheon at the presidential Blue House on Friday with the commander and generals of the United States Forces Korea, her office said by text message. She was planning to emphasise the importance of a firm joint defence posture amid escalating provocations from North Korea, according to the message.

China and Russia remain opposed to Thaad as they believe it will destabilise the region, with Beijing considering economic retaliation if South Korea deploys the missile shield. The issue has prompted China to give the cold shoulder to Park, only months after the two nations hailed ties as the best in history.