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US to Shelve European Missile Shield

Kremlin delighted as Obama administration ends Bush program

By Jason Farago, Newser Staff

Posted Sep 17, 2009 6:00 AM CDT

(Newser) – The Obama administration will scrap Bush-era plans to build a missile defense shield in eastern Europe, sources tell the Wall Street Journal—a move expected to delight Russia, which has strongly opposed the program. Washington is basing its decision on a new, more modest assessment of Iran's long-range missile capabilities. Instead of focusing on long-range attacks, the White House will encourage NATO allies to develop regional defenses for short- and medium-range missiles.

With Iran refusing to budge in nuclear negotiations, the US needs Russia to support further economic sanctions when Security Council members meet next month. But the decision to shelve the program will anger Poland, the Czech Republic, and other eastern European nations who have viewed the Washington's "reset" of US-Russia relations warily. A Polish official said he wouldn't "speculate" on the fallout from the program's termination but added: "We expect the US will abide by its commitments."

[Images (3)]

[Quotes (1)]

An assistant shows the mock 'reset' button that US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton handed over to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov during a meeting in Geneva earlier this year. (AP Photo/Fabrice Coffrini, Pool)

A C300 anti-aircraft missile flies overhead during an air defense exercise earlier this month near the Black Sea town of Shabla, east of the Bulgarian capital Sofia. (AP Photo/Petar Petrov)

Polish President Lech Kaczynski listens to then-Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice speak after signing an agreement to place a US base of 10 missile interceptors in northern Poland last year. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)

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We believed that the emergence of the intercontinental ballistic missile would come much faster than it did. The reality is, it has not come as fast as we thought it would come. - Gen. James Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

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COMMENTS

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Showing 3 of 35 comments

Guest

Sep 22, 2009 9:41 PM CDT

ah , original , did you say ad hominid ? whats that mean ? have a baby ?

Guest

Sep 20, 2009 8:03 PM CDT

You don't know it but you just made the point that we should be appeasing Russia. What was the end result of the Cold War? The complete economic and military implosion of the Soviet Union. And now what's the result of that? We supported the Taliban with military arms and training in order to help them defeat Russia. That really didn't work out for us. And I can't tell you how many rounds that were fired at me from weapons that Russia had to sell on the black market so they could purchase enough power to keep the population alive. America has been pushing Russia up against a wall for so long that we can't see the forest through the trees. This is an age for alliances not divisiveness. If you want Russia to stop selling arms to other countries then you've got to look at it logically. If we can get them to stop feeling threatened then maybe we can begin setting up aid packages that eventually ends with a total draw down of forces and the proper disposal of all cold war surplus weaponry.

Reader65069154

Sep 17, 2009 7:54 AM CDT

So now we're in the business of appeasing Russia? The same country selling T-72s and SAMs to Venezuela?

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US to Shelve European Missile Shield