Washington believes Russia and the US may cooperate on configuring a new American ballistic missile defense system proposed by Barack Obama in September. Ellen Tauscher, the Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Affairs, reaffirmed this statement.
This statement does not clash with the Medvedev-Obama consultations and discussions, though the ABM system in question will not be purely American. It will possibly feature Russia, NATO and Japan. However, Kevin Chillton, the current US Commander has already criticized the new ABM architecture and urged caution as China’s reaction may be a destabilizing factor.
A series of crucial past and present problems should be taken into account while building a new ant-ballistic defense system in Europe. Washington should understand that Moscow can only be a full-fledged player in implementing joint plans. Russia’s national security interests should also be taken into consideration.
Proposals of the then-President Vladimir Putin are still valid. He proposed to use Russia’s Radar Stations in Armavir and the one leased from Azerbaijan in the town of Gabala. Russia is also ready to build information exchange centers on missile defense in Moscow and Brussels.
Time has shown Russia was right when opposing American ABM deployment in Poland and the Czech Republic. Ellen Tauscher said that the US would have behaved the same if Russia deployed its missiles in Cuba. Now Moscow, Washington and the NATO countries need to come to mutual understanding on the future of the European missile defense system.
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