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TechnoratiUS, Poland Sign Missile Shield Deal
WARSAWÂ - Poland and the United States on Wednesday signed a deal to deploy part of a US missile shield on Polish territory in the face of deep Russian anger.
"This will help us to deal with the new threats of the 21st century, of long-range missile threats from countries like Iran or from North Korea," US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said before she signed the accord with Poland's Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski.
The signing comes amid heightened tensions between the United States and NATO, and Russia over the conflict with pro-Western Georgia.
But Rice again sought to fend off criticism.
"It is defensive and is not aimed at anyone," she said.
"It is nonetheless a system that establishes firmly again, and reaffirms, our cooperation and relationship with Poland. It will deepen our defence cooperation and it will deepen our ability to deal with threats."
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said the deal "achieved the basic aims that mean Poland and the United States are more secure".
Washington plans to base 10 interceptor missiles in Poland plus a radar facility in the neighbouring Czech Republic between 2011 and 2013.
Both hosts are NATO members since 1999 and the missile shield will complete a system already in place in the United States, Greenland and Britain.
Russia has rejected the US argument that the shield, which was endorsed by all 26 NATO member states earlier this year, is meant to fend off potential missile attacks by what Washington calls "rogue states".
Moscow claims the timing of the deal is further proof the system is aimed at Russia -- a suggestion rejected by Washington.
Moscow had already dubbed the shield a security threat designed to undermine Russia's nuclear deterrent.
"We will be forced to respond to this adequately. The EU and US have been warned," Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said last month as the missile talks moved to a close.
Last week, Russia's General Anatoly Nogovitsyn said Poland was making itself a target "100 percent".
Polish President Lech Kaczynski hit back in a televised address Tuesday, saying his country would not give in to threats.
"No one can dictate to Poland what it should do. That's in the past," Kaczynski said.
"Our neighbours should now understand that our nation will never give in, nor allow itself to be intimidated," he added.
Kaczynski did not name Russia directly, but his mention of the "past" was a clear reference to Poland's post-World War II decades as a Soviet satellite.
"No one should be afraid of (the shield), if they have good intentions towards us or the rest of the West," Kaczynski said.
Warsaw and Prague have had rocky relations with Moscow since they broke free from the Soviet bloc in 1989, and ties have worsened since they joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union in 2004.
To try to calm Moscow's ire, Poland has repeatedly offered to allow Russian inspections of the missile facilities.
US and Polish negotiators signed a preliminary deal in Warsaw last Thursday, capping 15 months of negotiations.
Talks had ground on until the United States accepted Poland's demands for extra security guarantees to offset the potential risks of hosting a base -- not specifically from Russia -- including a Patriot missile air-defence system and boosted military ties.
The missile plan foresees the deployment of several hundred US troops in Poland to service the shield facility as well as the Patriot missiles, which will gradually be turned over to the Poles once they have been trained to use them.
Washington and Prague sealed the radar deal in July.
Both accords must still be ratified by Polish and Czech parliaments.
© 2008 Agence France Presse
16 Comments so far
Show AllMr. Bush. Don't get in a chess game with the Russians. They are the experts. Your cowboy diplomacy is a dismal worldwide failure. Your devisive politics have brought this country to the brink of revolution. The world sees through your facade of democracy and liberty. Your hypocrisy and agressive neocon policies have the world in peril. You and your cabal are the most incompetent and dangerous in our nation's history. I never thought I would see so many people wanting to leave this hellhole you have created. 1-20-2009 canot come soon enough.
The USA never ceases to amaze me. With guys like the neocons plus McCain/Liebershit what can you expect. All things for Israel!!
QUESTION PLEASE READ AND THINK
1)HOW MANY OF YOU ON THIS SITE LEARNED THE TRUTH ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED IN GEORGIA/OSSETIA ON MAIN LINE MEDIA TV OR RADIO?
2) IF 100% NOTHING THEN WAS IT 100% INTERNET?
3) Now if the USA controls the internet like it does it can shut it down anytime it wants or certain web sites. Then we are not getting the truth, then we are all screwed. If you can find a person from other countries ( in Europe or South America) that you can discuss political things vie E mail or even the Post office with a letter you maybe a few steps ahead of the curve I feel is heading toward us like a giant wave and we are all standing on the beach.
We must stir up trouble and fear to justify military spending.
Putin is not a military threat unless we force him to be. He is into thuggery and kleptocracy and is a more of a problem for his own people than for us.
Another incredibly stupid move by Bush and crew.
Lobo Gris
RTD....
I feel it goes beyond that as this is trying to control the flow of oil in the world. You control that and you control countries and can do what you want. I hope the insane people in the White House don't think they can get away with a toe to toe fight with Russia. America only attacks countries that don't have an airforce, navy, or what is called a modern army.
The proposal that US elites need permanent war as life-support for their doomed economy keeps slapping their authoritarian followers in the face.
eastbound:
The US media never says the whole story in the Cuba missile crises, The US had to remove missiles from Turkey as part of the deal with Russia. Again as in Georgia the USA plays the poor me card when it is the aggreesor.
I DON'T LIKE THIS NEW FORMAT. CD LOST MY PASS WORD 3 TIMES AND WOULDN'T LET ME SIGN ON WITH MY OLD NAME. I ALSO NOTICED LESS POSTINGS ON STORIES THAN BEFORE
eastbound:
The US media never says the whole story in the Cuba missile crises, The US had to remove missiles from Turkey as part of the deal with Russia. Again as in Georgia the USA plays the poor me card when it is the aggreesor.
I DON'T LIKE THIS NEW FORMAT. CD LOST MY PASS WORD 3 TIMES AND WOULDN'T LET ME SIGN ON WITH MY OLD NAME. I ALSO NOTICED LESS POSTINGS ON STORIES THAN BEFORE
Russia certainly has every right to protect itself from Iranian missiles by arming ... Cuba, again. JFK put IRBMs in Turkey, remember?
I have written to my State Governor asking where our Civil Defense bomb shelters were and if they were stocked to support life for the half life of Plutonium. How about you?
I am waiting for what happens when the Russians place "defensive missle installations" in Venezuela, Bolivia, or Ecuador for [protection against the newly revived US 4th fleet.
Perhaps the Chinese will obtain the use of refueling and refitting facilities for their growing blue water navy somewhere in the Carribean (and maybe an exlusive contract for maintenance and management of the Panama Canal after a more left friendly government is installed there.)
Maybe then those dummies at the Pentagon and Foggy Bottom will finally understand.
Poet
When that happens, the US will remove them.
Thank you Truth teller--that was exactly my point. If Russia has any respect for its territorial integrity it will blast those installations to smitherines. They will then have as many divisions and tank corps needed to roll west in case the US tries any retalitory raids--just like the US would do if such happened in Mexico or Belieze, or Nicauragua, or the Bahammas.
Poet
This is the purest of atrocities. If ever there was a self-fulfilling prophesy, this is it. Siting missiles in Poland will require Russia to defend itself. That is to say: as we would undoubtedly do ourselves.
Therefore, it can only be construed as intentional provocation. Easy for someone "beyond the draft", sitting in a round office so that the devil can't catch him in the corner, to do.
We've had peace in Eastern Europe for several years now without a military escalation because peace can only come from peace. Someone has an addiction/sanity problem, believing that a different result will obtain from the same old same old.
There can be no doubt, observing the present international situation, that what we're seeing is plain old unvarnished vanilla imperialist aggression. It's about corporate wealth: is there a single draftable human out there who really would benefit from a war?
The whole appeasement conversation is a lie. Our corporations, though they are in fact abandoning us like a sinking ship, want the wealth for which Russia poses the threat of competition.
Tell me it ain't so.
I've got this sick feeling that the CIA instigated the Georgian-Russian conflict to give the impetus to push forward the missile shield agreement in Poland, which seemed to be at a stalemate prior to Russia's overwhelming response. I don't blame Russia for being paranoid in response to the USA imperialist moves, especially on her borders. A Cuban missile crisis in reverse.
This has Russia real pissed off. I feel a major nuke country like Russia is not a good idea to piss them off. Poland maybe take the first blow on this but it maybe go from there to other areas of the world. I just hope someone in Washington doesn't have the idea they can win a nuke exchange with Russia and we all stay alive.