|
|||||
|
|||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||
 |
 |
    |
|
|
|||
 |
|
||
|
|||
|
|
|
|
||||||||
|
United States Should Maintain Russian Involvement in Missile Defense, U.S. Lawmaker Says By Mike Nartker WASHINGTON — The United States has an “obligation” to ensure that Russia is involved in missile defense efforts, which in turn could help improve overall relations between the two countries, U.S. Representative Curt Weldon (R-Pa.) told reporters yesterday (see GSN, May 26). As examples of possible joint efforts, Weldon proposed that the United States might someday deploy boost-phase missile defense systems, which seek to shoot down enemy ballistic missiles soon after launch, in the Russian Far East to help counter possible North Korean missile attacks. The United States could also help fund Russia’s construction of an advanced version of its S-300 theater missile defense system, he said. The subject of joint U.S.-Russian missile defense efforts was also raised last month during a meeting in Moscow between a U.S. delegation of lawmakers and Missile Defense Agency officials and Russian officials, said Weldon, who led the U.S. delegation. During that trip, agency officials proposed using Russian-made targets in missile defense exercises and proposed helping to fund the construction of a large phased-array radar system in eastern Russia, Weldon said. He added that such a radar system, which would “complement” a U.S. system, would aid the United States in tracking possible missile launches from a number of countries of concern, including China, Iran, North Korea and Syria. Weldon also said that the United States cannot “walk away” from the Russian-American Observation Satellite (RAMOS) program, which was intended to construct two observation satellites for civilian and military use. According to reports, the Missile Defense Agency has decided to cancel the project. To date, the United States has done a poor job in convincing Russia that missile defense efforts pose little threat to Russian security, Weldon said. “We [have] to get beyond the mindset of being Cold War enemies,” he said. Russia’s involvement in missile defense efforts could also help improve overall U.S.-Russian relations, which “are not good right now,” Weldon said. He criticized both the Bush and Clinton administrations for a series of what he described as foreign policy missteps over the past 15 years that have damaged bilateral relations, such as the handling of the U.S. withdrawal from the Antiballistic Missile Treaty and continued Cold War-era trade restrictions against Russia. “We [have] to give them [the Russians] some wins,” Weldon said.
| ||||||||||
Back to top
