Russia is waiting (with missiles of their own) to see if Obama continues Bush's Cold War deployment

. . . of U.S. 'missile defense' systems to Eastern Europe.


Russian missile deployment depends on US moves

MOSCOW (AP) - Moscow will go ahead with its plan to station missiles near Poland only if the United States deploys missile defenses in Europe, a senior Russian diplomat said Sunday.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko, in remarks carried by the Interfax news agency, said if Washington halts its plans to deploy 10 missile interceptors and radar in the Czech Republic there will be no need for Russia to place short-range Iskander missiles in its western Kaliningrad region.

``These measures will only be implemented if the U.S. missile defense system is deployed,'' Grushko said, according to Interfax.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev announced plans to deploy the Iskander missiles on Wednesday, the day after Barack Obama won the U.S. presidential election.

The Iskander has a range of 280 kilometers (175 miles), which would allow it to reach targets in Poland but not in the Czech Republic _ but officials say its range could be increased. Medvedev did not say whether the missiles would be fitted with conventional or nuclear warheads.


read more: http://www.tri-parishtimes.com/articles/2008/11/10/ap/world/51_54_apw.txt

Of course, an attack on a missle defense station would tip your hand to a pre-emptive strike.

Altogether, this is all really stupid. We're spending money on countermeasures to countermeasures that will never amount to anything as once one missle goes up ... they'll ALL go up and civilization will end.

. . . another boon for the military defense industry - c/o their former military industry executives infecting almost every branch of the Bush administration.

The whole concept of missile defense is so last Century. How 'bout iffin' we stop messing in the internal affairs of other countries and stop lobbing things that go BOOM into and out of their territories, killing innocent civilians? Don't you think Peace would eventually break out? I sure do.

MOSCOW, November 10 (RIA Novosti) - Mayors of 15 Czech cities are to ask U.S. president-elect Barack Obama to abandon the Bush administration's plans to place a missile defense radar in the Czech Republic, a member of the European parliament said on Monday.

The agreement to station a U.S. radar near a military area about 90 kilometers (55 miles) southwest of Prague was signed on July 8 by U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Czech Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg.

"Heads of local administrations are planning to ask Obama to pay attention not only to the position of the central government of this country, but also to the opinion expressed by local residents," said Giulietto Chiesa, who is visiting the Czech Republic on behalf of another 18 European MP who oppose U.S. missile shield plans for Central Europe.

According to recent public opinion polls, two-thirds of Czechs are against the planned stationing of a U.S. missile defense radar base on Czech soil.

http://en.rian.ru/world/20081110/118227718.html