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TechnoratiRussia: Poland Risks Attack Because of US Missiles
A top Russian general said Friday that Poland's agreement to accept a U.S. missile interceptor base exposes the ex-communist nation to attack, possibly by nuclear weapons, the Interfax news agency reported.
The statement by Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn is the strongest threat that Russia has issued against the plans to put missile defense elements in former Soviet satellite nations.
Poland and the United States on Thursday signed a deal for Poland to accept a missile interceptor base as part of a system the United States says is aimed at blocking attacks by rogue nations. Moscow, however, feels it is aimed at Russia's missile force.
"Poland, by deploying (the system) is exposing itself to a strike - 100 percent," Nogovitsyn, the deputy chief of staff, was quoted as saying.
He added, in clear reference to the agreement, that Russia's military doctrine sanctions the use of nuclear weapons "against the allies of countries having nuclear weapons if they in some way help them." Nogovitsyn that would include elements of strategic deterrence systems, he said, according to Interfax.
At a news conference earlier Friday, Nogovitsyn had reiterated Russia's frequently stated warning that placing missile-defense elements in Poland and the Czech Republic would bring an unspecified military response. But his subsequent reported statement substantially stepped up a war of words.
U.S. officials have said the timing of the deal was not meant to antagonize Russian leaders at a time when relations already are strained over the recent fighting between Russia and Georgia over the separatist Georgian region of South Ossetia.
Russian forces went deep into Georgia in the fighting, raising wide concerns that Russia could be seeking to occupy parts of its small, pro-U.S. neighbor, which has vigorously lobbied to join NATO, or even to force its government to collapse.
Under the agreement that Warsaw and Washington reached Thursday, Poland will accept an American missile interceptor base.
"We have crossed the Rubicon," Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said, referring to U.S. consent to Poland's demands after more than 18 months of negotiations.
Washington says the planned system, which is not yet operational, is needed to protect the U.S. and Europe from possible attacks by missile-armed "rogue states" like Iran. The Kremlin, however, feels it is aimed at Russia's missile force and warns it will worsen tensions.
In an interview on Poland's news channel TVN24, Tusk said the United States agreed to help augment Poland's defenses with Patriot missiles in exchange for placing 10 missile defense interceptors in the Eastern European country.
He said the deal also includes a "mutual commitment" between the two nations to come to each other's assistance "in case of trouble."
That clause appeared to be a direct reference to Russia.
Poland has all along been guided by fears of a newly resurgent Russia, an anxiety that has intensified with Russia's offensive in Georgia. In past days, Polish leaders said that fighting justified Poland's demands that it get additional security guarantees from Washington in exchange for allowing the anti-missile base on its soil.
© 2008 Associated Press
13 Comments so far
Show AllIf these missile defenses don't work, why the hubub? Seems like the only one hurt by this plan is the American taxpayer footing the bill.
While the underlying motivations of the Poles is understandable (their country was subjugated by the Russians in a very ugly manner), the way they are going about it under their current leadership is ham-handed. Membership in NATO and the European Union is sufficiently provocative to Czar Putin & Co.
The system could never work. Just like the anti-missle defences on a ship, they have a capacity for stopping a missle or two, maybe three. Then they take an hour to reload, if they have the ordinance availabe, meanwhile any enemy with a brain will launch more weapons at the target than the target can stop.
The us claims that Poland is a great site for a missle shield to stop weapons fired from Iran. Iran's missles couldn't hit the European side of Istanbul. But if Iran built missles that flew further why not ask reporters to place a string on a globe that projects a flight path from Iran to Europe, perhaps they might notice that there is no way a defensive missle in Poland would or could hit a missle fired from Iran...
bush is trying to resurect the Cuban missle crisis of 62, this time he's playing the role of Kruschev. Damn shame the bushitter isn't half the actor that reagan was.
This system is not defensive since an attack on Europe by the USSR would bypass this system with bombers and submarine missiles. A rogue nation would explode an atom bomb brought into the country to be attacked, not with missiles. This system is for the purpose of facilitating an attack on Russia or China. It is an offensive system, and placing them is offensive in more ways than one.
Missile Defense makes the world a much, much, much more dangerous place.
Missile defense violates all of the ballistic missile treaties of the past 50 years.
Missile defense has re-ignited the Cold War nuclear arms race.
Missile defense in Poland, Czech, and Britian is the equivalent of a Cuban-esque Missile Crisis- threatening Russia's sovereignty.
Missile defense provides a false sense of security.
Missile defense is actually antithetical to security because it is a first strike weapon.
Missile defense is obviously NOT aimed at Iran... as we can all see by the obvious timing of this conclusion of the agreement between Poland and US... one week after the US initiates a new war in Osetia/Georgia a soviet satellite state who BushCo. was trying to recruit into NATO last month.
Missile defense is insane.
Men who build nuclear weapons for their protection are insane.
Men who refuse to disarm and eliminate nuclear weapons are insane.
Big Business Military Ind. Complex has put their profit margins ahead of the sanctity of the earth and the safe non-nuclear future of their own grandchildren. Big business is not human... it does not have a conscious. It must be stopped.
These bastards are about to ruin civilization as we know it.
Spinoza: "Before anyone hollers "The Bush administration is crazy," remember that there's pretty much a bipartisan consensus to deploy this system in Eastern Europe. I doubt Obama will reverse this if he becomes president."
It's nice when someone gets in with a sensible comment like this one first.
According to Wikipedia (article "PGM-19 Jupiter"), "One squadron totaling 15 missiles was deployed at 5 sites near Ä°zmir, Turkey from 1961 to 1963. They were operated by U.S. Air Force personnel."
So it sounds like the timing of putting U.S. missiles in Turkey, relative to JFK's election (on Jan 20th 1961), was roughly equivalent to the timing of the proposed U.S. missile shield relative to Obama's potential election.
In fact, if the missiles were installed any time after Jan 20th, then they were actually put there under the JFK admininstration. Either way, the site had first been investigated as a place for deploying U.S. missiles in 1959--just as the proposed missile defense shield has been pushed hard for the last two years or so.
The fake progressive JFK did nothing to stop such an insanely irresponsible imperialistic/militaristic move, and probably actively pushed it through so as not to appear soft on communism, which led to nukes being pointed at the U.S. during the Cuban crisis. What makes anybody think Obama will act any differently from liberal poster boy JFK?
If it weren't for increasingly nationalist Russia and China, I'd say with confidence that the fall of the American empire will be an extremely progressive development. Given the present course of those two countries, it will probably be neutral. Two nations are poised to quickly take our contemptible place.
Before anyone hollers "The Bush administration is crazy," remember that there's pretty much a bipartisan consensus to deploy this system in Eastern Europe. I doubt Obama will reverse this if he becomes president.
Nothing good ever comes out of making a deal with the United States. The people of Europe MUST demand their governments forgo any more tangling alliances with the US.
NATO MUST be disbanded as it's irrelevant and is simply a tool for US imperial ambitions.
The US had a chance in the early 90's of ushering a new era of peace and global security. Instead, they chose greed, hubris and empire, exposing the world to much more insecurity and a threat to our very existence. Way to go America!
It becomes more clear every year that the slim chance the human race had to survive to the end of this century has been pissed away in the last 20 years by American ignorance, greed, and hubris.
the polish leadership is just like the georgian leadership in that they have opted to embrace the neocon imperial american "way of war" - to their own peril
the russians will not tolerate these bases - and they are right to reject them
just as the americans refused to accept russian nukes in cuba back in the 60's
the americans citing "rogue states" in their reasoning is laughable
there is only one rogue state in the world and that is the united states of imperial death
goading the idiots in georgia to attack south ossetia to coincide with the opening of the olympic games was a stick in the eye of the chinese - this snub will not be forgotten
by the way, over 80% of the polish people reject the idea of deploying these missiles
so much for democracy
as the us proved in georgia - all you need is a neofascist wannabe at the head of state - fuck the people - who cares what they think
There's been a lot of speculation as to why the "puppet" Saakashvili (a US-trained NY lawyer installed by the neocons via so-called NGOs in a so-called "color revolution") went off th reservation and got "taken in" by a crafty plot by the Russians to get him to invade S. Ossetia.
Well, with this missile shield deal and the simple question of "who benefits?", it makes ya wonder...did the US tell Saakashvili to invade Georgia? Georgian nationalism is surging. Saakashvili (what a creep) benefits politically. Polish were frightened into doing what the US wanted (and uh-boy the promises we've made in exchange). US benefits. Israeli and US arms and "security" dealers make big bucks....
It's hard to even think about. The propaganda is so thick you can't believe anything you read.
I feel especially sorry for people in Georgia, Poland, etc. Their media is even more propagandistic tha ours. I read in the NY Pentagon Propaganda Times that Poland's media was simply leaving out the part where Georgia attacked S. Ossetia first. So I guess those that don't have internet access believe that the Russians attacked "poor little Georgia" for no reason.
Did you know Ruper Murdoch own news organs in many of these countries?
Did you know that McCain's Zionist foreign policy advisor is a paid and registered "foreign agent" of Georgia and has been for a long time. Not to mention his prominent role in creating the propaganda "casus belli" for the Iraq war and many other nasty things. Look him up on Wikipedia or elsewhere. It's bad stuff.
Did you know that Zbigniew Brszhenski (sp) is Obama's foreign policy advisor? That's not change I can believe in.
Bad juju all of it.
Poland is living up to their reputation as fools....agreeing to put in a anti-missle system that has NEVER workedin fair tests, for a country that has just demonstrated that it will do NOTHING to help its silly pawns in the area, and in direct provocation to their resurgent, stronger neighbour.
But I hear the USA has agreed to upgrade the Polish Navy in exhchange, by providing glass bottom boats so the New Polish Navy can easlily observe the Old Polish Navy.
Those silly Poles...
the headline could also be read as "potential allies angered, tensions raised, mission accomplished."
and yes, it's a thoroughly bipartisan mission.