| U.S. Plans
Deployment of Missile Defense in Eastern Europe
Planning to extend the coverage of its missile defense system,
the US opened formal negotiations with Poland and the Czech
Republic about basing elements of the U.S. anti-ballistic missile
system in Eastern Europe. The purpose of these systems will
be to provide for a 'first line of defense' against attacks
by 'rogue states'.
The interceptors will provide protection for both Europe and
the continental United States, from single missile firings or
small salvos of ballistic missiles launched from Iran or North
Korea. However, the steps are causing significant concern in
Russia. Russia has been a persistent critic of the proposed
European installations. On Monday, Lieutenant-General Vladimir
Popovkin, chief of the Space Forces branch of the Russian military,
told reporters in Moscow the placement of the U.S. facilities
in the two former Warsaw Pact states would create a clear threat
to Russia.
Since their formal acceptance into the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization (NATO) in 1999, both Poland and the Czech Republic
have become US Allays. Under the new scheme, a number of interceptor
missiles would be based in Poland. By 2010 the US plans to have
missile-defense radar operational in the neighboring Czech Republic.
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