Non-Subscriber Extract
Moscow ready to retaliate if US builds missile defences
06 June 2007
Moscow is preparing to take retaliatory measures if the US builds missile-defence systems in Eastern Europe, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said.
Washington has said it wants to deploy interceptor missiles in Poland and a radar base in the Czech Republic to guard against a potential missile threat from Iran or North Korea. Moscow, however, already wary of NATO's expansion to include former Warsaw Pact member states, has condemned the plans as a threat to its national security and a destabilising factor for Europe.
Such condemnation was extended ahead of the start of the three-day G8 summit in Heiligendamm, Germany, on 6 June; Putin described the threat from Iran and North Korea as non-existent and suggested that the new system might be aimed at Russia.
He said that if the US did not change its mind about the missile shield, "then we disclaim responsibility for our retaliatory steps, because it is not we who are the initiators of the new arms race that is undoubtedly brewing in Europe".