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U.S. uncertain missile shield
deal can be reached in S.Russia
RIA
Novosti
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
The U.S. and Russia may not resolve their European
missile shield dispute at an upcoming meeting in Sochi between
the presidents, but will continue working on the issue, a White
House official said.
The U.S. intends to deploy 10 interceptor missiles in Poland
and a radar in the Czech Republic citing a threat from Iran and
other "rogue states," while Russia views these plans
as a destabilizing factor for Europe and a threat to its national
security.
"An issue about how Russia might fit and cooperate and be
a part of those efforts, that probably is for Sochi or later -
it may not get done by Sochi. There's no deadline here,"
National Security Advisor Steve Hadley told reporters on board
Air Force One during the U.S. president's flight to Ukraine on
Monday.
(Article continues below)
George W. Bush arrived in Ukraine late on Monday to start a week-long
tour of Eastern Europe, of which the highlight will be a NATO
summit in Bucharest, Romania.
He will meet with Russia's President Vladimir Putin over the
weekend in the Black Sea resort of Sochi for the last time before
Putin leaves his post.
"Sochi is for an opportunity for these two leaders to get
together again. It is an opportunity to reach an agreement on
missile defense. But, hey, if we don't have it by Sochi, we'll
keep working it," Hadley said.
Recently, there has been some progress in the long-running dispute
between the two countries over the missile defense issue.
During their visit to Moscow in late March, U.S. Defense Secretary
Robert Gates and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice offered to
let Russia monitor the proposed U.S. missile and radar bases in
Eastern Europe.
Washington has also offered not to activate the system until
there is a "clear and present" threat from Iran or other
potential adversaries.
"I think we're moving in a direction...where Russia and
the United States could have missile defense as an area of strategic
cooperation," Hadley told reporters.
Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov praised last week U.S.
moves to ease Russian missile shield concerns, but said giving
up the idea of opening new missile bases in Central Europe was
the best way of addressing Moscow's unease.
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