Russia, China slam US missile shield
Source: Alalam.ir, 24-05-2008
BEIJING-New Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and Chinese leader Hu Jintao have denounced a planned US missile shield as "harmful" to international efforts to control arms.
Hu and visiting Medvedev said Friday in a joint statement in Beijing: "We express our concerns on this subject."
The Russian leader had arrived in Beijing on his first trip abroad since taking office.
"The creation of a global anti-missile defense system, including its deployment in certain parts of the world or moves in that direction, would not contribute to maintaining strategic balance and stability," the statement said.
It said the plan "hinders international arms control and non-proliferation efforts as well as cooperation between states and regional stability."
The US has proposed to site a radar in the Czech Republic and interceptor missiles in Poland as part of a what it claims to be a shield against terrorists.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk also expressed reservations about the impact of the planned missile shield on Poland's security should Warsaw agree to the installation.
"We're in negotiations to effectively reinforce our security. The Americans have a different evaluation than we do about the effects the missile shield could have on our security," Tusk told reporters.
For Washington, the missile shield is primarily intended to protect the US from possible attacks by so-called "rogue states".
Initial plans call for the 10 interceptor missile silos in Poland coupled with a high-powered radar in the neighboring Czech Republic by 2012-2013.
Russia sees the project as a grave menace to its security on its very doorstep.
In rhetoric reminiscent of the Cold War, Moscow has threatened to point its missiles at Poland should it agree to host the US installation.
Concerned by the potential risks of accepting the project, Poland is seeking extra security guarantees from Washington, including aid in modernizing its armed forces, particularly in the form of Patriot 3 or THAAD anti-missile interceptors.
Poland's FM Radoslaw Sikorski termed "banal" a recent press comment by US Assistant Secretary of State Stephen Mull suggesting that Poland must finance the lion's share of its military modernization on its own.
BEIJING-New Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and Chinese leader Hu Jintao have denounced a planned US missile shield as "harmful" to international efforts to control arms.
Hu and visiting Medvedev said Friday in a joint statement in Beijing: "We express our concerns on this subject."
The Russian leader had arrived in Beijing on his first trip abroad since taking office.
"The creation of a global anti-missile defense system, including its deployment in certain parts of the world or moves in that direction, would not contribute to maintaining strategic balance and stability," the statement said.
It said the plan "hinders international arms control and non-proliferation efforts as well as cooperation between states and regional stability."
The US has proposed to site a radar in the Czech Republic and interceptor missiles in Poland as part of a what it claims to be a shield against terrorists.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk also expressed reservations about the impact of the planned missile shield on Poland's security should Warsaw agree to the installation.
"We're in negotiations to effectively reinforce our security. The Americans have a different evaluation than we do about the effects the missile shield could have on our security," Tusk told reporters.
For Washington, the missile shield is primarily intended to protect the US from possible attacks by so-called "rogue states".
Initial plans call for the 10 interceptor missile silos in Poland coupled with a high-powered radar in the neighboring Czech Republic by 2012-2013.
Russia sees the project as a grave menace to its security on its very doorstep.
In rhetoric reminiscent of the Cold War, Moscow has threatened to point its missiles at Poland should it agree to host the US installation.
Concerned by the potential risks of accepting the project, Poland is seeking extra security guarantees from Washington, including aid in modernizing its armed forces, particularly in the form of Patriot 3 or THAAD anti-missile interceptors.
Poland's FM Radoslaw Sikorski termed "banal" a recent press comment by US Assistant Secretary of State Stephen Mull suggesting that Poland must finance the lion's share of its military modernization on its own.
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