Posted on 11/17/2005 1:13:40 AM PST by twinself
WASHINGTON (AP) - U.S. and Polish officials are discussing building a base in Poland from which U.S. interceptors could shoot down long-range missiles as part of a global defence network, a Pentagon official said Wednesday.
It would be the first American strategic missile defence site outside U.S. territory, and would be designed to defend all of Europe against intercontinental-range missiles - primarily those launched from the Middle East.
No decision has been made to proceed with a missile defence base in Poland and alternative sites in Europe are a possibility. But the Pentagon official said Poland appears to be the most likely host country for the kind of American military installation that would have been unthinkable before Poland joined NATO in 1999.
The official discussed the matter only on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly.
The Pentagon has made no public announcement of its discussions with Polish officials, although it has made known its extensive consultations in recent years with NATO allies on the threat posed by ballistic missiles.
On Monday, Poland's new prime minister, Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz, said he was opening a public debate on whether to host a U.S. missile defence base.
He did not specifically say Washington was interested in installing ground-based interceptors of the sort that the Pentagon has recently installed in Alaska.
"This is an important issue for Poland, related to our security and to our co-operation with an important ally," Marcinkiewicz said.
He leads a new conservative government in Warsaw that took office on Oct. 31. The previous government had expressed concern that missile defence co-operation with Washington could harm relations with Russia, which had opposed Poland's decision to become a member of NATO.
The U.S. military has no permanent bases in Poland or other Central and Eastern European countries formerly aligned with the Soviet Union. The U.S. does have bases in former Soviet republics in Central Asia such as Kyrgyzstan.
U.S. officials have been discussing with new NATO members Romania and Bulgaria the possibility of basing some U.S. troops there as part of a repositioning of U.S. forces around the world.
U.S. officials have been considering a number of possibilities for extending the American missile defence network to include Europe, although most of the focus has been on defences against short-range missiles.
Long-range missiles are considered an emerging threat, in the view of Bush administration officials, because of the proliferation of technologies that would allow countries such as Iran and possibly Syria or Libya to build extended-range missiles. The threat is especially worrisome when coupled with nuclear warheads.
The current U.S. defence system against long-range missiles is limited mainly to an installation at Fort Greely, Alaska, where at least six missile interceptors are in underground silos, linked to a command and control system. It is designed mainly to shoot down missiles fired at U.S. territory from North Korea, with future expansion planned.
The Pentagon official who discussed the Polish option said that if a missile defence base were built there, it probably would be the only one needed to defend Europe against long-range missiles, although radars, other sensors and interceptors designed to combat shorter range missiles also would be needed for a complete defence.
The official estimated that a site in Poland would not be ready to begin operating before 2010. He offered no estimate on how much it might cost or when U.S. officials were likely to make a decision to proceed. Also undetermined is whether the site would be controlled jointly by U.S. and Polish forces or possibly with a NATO role.
It seems to me he does his best to raise hard feelings towards Poland.
And vice versa. My experience of FR made my more russophobic than ever. Hope that not everybody thinks the way some people here thinks...
Probably we need to change themes of conversation. Or to try understand each other feelings.
What I'm talking about, however, is a clearly visible lies and soviet propaganda spread by some of the Freepers that harm my feelings...I realy can't understand that.
Ok.
About minding own businesses. Why does Poland object to the Northern Baltic pipeline? This is just a deal between two your neighbours.
Speaking about enlarging NATO - many Russians thinks that's a military allinace against Russia as the primary purpose.
==Are you familiar with so called Pascal's dilemma? If not then let me clarify it a little bit. It considered pros and cons of faith in God's existence.==
Pascal forgot Allah, Budda etc. So his dilemma isn't working :)
I realy can't see ANY threat to Russia because of those bases...Can you??===
You know if one neibor gets new shield then even it is a peaceful neibor I would rather prefer to make my own sword better. Just precautions.
That base will be better shield. One with sword and better shield is more armed then one with only sword.
Then second one need to reach parity means the better sword to be able to counterweight better shield of neibor.
I understand that Poland is just client country. Always in someone wake. Recently in USSR's, now Poland accquired new boss. SO to avail her lands for boss base is very repeatable. Just recently soviet bases stood there, today american will be. SO I haven't surprised at all.
It is the fate of client country. Never be a independent.
Billions for the Poles, not a cent for Old Europe. ;) A tour bus full of Poles emptied itself where I worked last summer. We are still recovering from the hugs and good will. I've never met folks who were so overjoyed at hanging around with Americans.
We are already in an arms race with the Russians. Search the FR archives and you'll find a recent article on the Russians bragging how they have developed a missile to defeat our system. Since we are the only ones who have announced research into anti-missile systems, who do you think the Russians built it to use against?
==I realy can't see ANY threat to Russia because of those bases...Can you??==
After Kosovo? Yes, of course.
Imagine Russian bases in Mexico, Panama, Cuba etc. Will you be happy?
The parades would be rather difficult since there is now a gate and church blocking a large portion of where the vehicles used to travel through, in other words, the entrances to Red Square.
Russians don't hate the Poles nor do they fear them. They do respond to endless Polish provocations. Personally, I think Russia should totally embargo Poland and ignore it as an none entity. Besides, if anything needs to be settled in reference to Poland, the Russians should go to the real masters of Poland, Brussels or the pay masters of Poland: Germany, France and England.
Why on earth would you build it in Poland then? In such a case you'd build the system in Georgia or Bulgaria or Romania or Cyprus or Greece, not in Poland. A missile heading towards the US wouldn't fly over Europe anyways (not from Iran), with the exception of possibly flying over Russian airspace and the Russians can take it out. At most it'll skirt southern Europe. A missile heading towards Italy or Germany still wouldn't fly close to Poland.
ping, the vox_PL blows a blood vessel again screaming racism, but what else is new?
It wouldn't be through Poland. You couldn't launch a interceptor from the U.S. because of the distance. So Poland may not be the best location, but it is preferred to locating them in Western Europe. In any event this is a problem for the U.S., Europe, including Russia. All have ongoing problems with Islamic terror, and all are potential targets. In any event interceptors are not nuclear mussels in the first place, so all the talk about aiming this, that or the other is irrelevant to the article at hand.
Yeah, I'm sure your neighbors in Czech, Lithuania, Belaruss, Ukriane and Moldovia see you in the same light, considering your constant invasions starting in the 1300s and stopped only during the 200 years you were partitioned (as a response to those constant invasions). Of course that didn't stop you in the 1920s or in 1938, but hay, you're the "victim", yeah right.
New Europe rules! Poland is a good friend to the USA.
And yet you're the first one to cry and biatch when the Russians build a pipeline around you and embargo your products....like the Palistinians you want everything your way but want the right to spit in whom ever's eye without getting decked back. Not going to happen. You'll get your dream and your 19% umemployment will keep going up, with a massive market showing you the finger while you loose your tranfer duties of off the oil and gas that will no longer pass over your territories.
But the real question is: How long will the Germans and French and British continue to pay for you welfare queens to sit on your unemployed arses and do nothing?
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