Russian Threats Miss Point of Proposed Missile Defenses, Official Says

American Forces Press Service ^ | Donna Miles

[SandRat]

WASHINGTON, Nov. 5, 2008 – Russian President Dmitriy Medvedev’s threat today to deploy missiles targeting proposed U.S. missile defenses in Eastern Europe misses the point that the system will be purely defensive and will pose no threat to Russia, a Pentagon spokesman said today.

“These are interceptors,” Bryan Whitman said of the system that will include 10 missile silos in Poland and a radar station in the Czech Republic. “And they are designed to protect our European allies as well as the … United States from an emerging ballistic missile threat from the Middle East.”

Medvedev made headlines during his annual address to the Federal Assembly today, announcing that Russia will deploy short-range missiles in the Baltic Sea region in response to plans to build the missile defense system.

Russia also will develop jamming capabilities to counter the system, and cancel its plans to decommission a missile division in Kozelsk by 2010, Medvedev said.

The Russian president said Russia’s conflict with Georgia in the Caucasus served as “a pretext for the appearance of NATO’s warships and then, for the accelerated enforcement of America’s missile defense systems on Europe.”

Whitman emphasized that the United States has gone out of its way to reassure the Russians that the proposed missile defense system “is not a system that threatens them.”

“We have offered any number of transparency arrangements [and] briefings to try to mitigate their concerns,… and nothing in today’s news changes our position with respect to trying to collaborate [and] cooperate with our European partners,” he said.

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates expressed similar sentiments last week, telling a Carnegie Endowment for International Peace audience he’s confident the Russians know the proposed system doesn’t threaten them. He called objections that 10 missile-defense interceptors would jeopardize Russia’s arsenal “laughable.”

“I think we’ve leaned forward pretty far and have been open with them about what we intend to do,” Gates said. “I think we have gone a long way toward providing the necessary assurances to Russia that this system is not aimed at them, but is aimed at a very limited threat coming from Iran.”

Gates noted proposals the United States has offered to help reassure Russia. One would allow Russia to have representatives at each site, if the host nation agreed, to provide technical monitoring of activities. Another would be to base a common-data-sharing center in Moscow.

Gates said he assured Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin when Putin was president that the United States would not make the sites operational until the Iranians had tested a missile that could reach most of Western Europe, including parts of Russia.

“We have provided transparency in a number of ways,” Gates said. While the Russian military “has shown some interest in this,” Russians have “chosen to make an issue of the notion” for political reasons, he said.

Related Articles:
Russians Know Missile Defenses Not Aimed at Them, Gates Says

[ChocChipCookie]

Is it just me, or is this an incredibly naive response? The Russians have had YEARS to figure out that our missle DEFENSE system is for DEFENSE. If they CHOOSE to believe otherwise, so be it. They already know that Obamonkey will back down and blather on and on about “coming to a mutual understanding.” They have nothing to fear from him, but we do.

[mgc1122]

Mother Russia is FAR MORE concerned about the dwindling value of its bottle rockets if an effective US defense exists ... they are pseudo capitalists thriving on weaponry as well as energy these days.

[TennTuxedo]

The Russians did not miss any points.

It is the United States Government who missed the Russian's points.

The Russians are making a strategic gambit aimed squarely at Obama.

[Starboard]

They have nothing to fear from him, but we do.

Good line.

[GAB-1955]

It's hard to play chess when your opponent isn't paying attention to the game. This week Obama is going to get his first dose of reality.

[Dr. Bogus Pachysandra]

Related. With a great graphic.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2126364/posts

[RobinOfKingston]

Russian Threats Miss Point of Proposed Missile Defenses, Official Says

Official Misses Point of Russian Threat, I Say

[xkaydet65]

Correct. And this gambit is aimed directly at Poland, the Baltic states, the Czechs and Hungarians.A warning to the near abroad, "We are coming and you have no one to defend you!!"

I'm sure the 300 advisers to our new President have mapped out our necesary military response. I'm sure the orders will go out to deploy nuclear cruise missile to ...Oh wait.

[Ingtar]

It hardly matters anyway. It will be scrapped as too controversial and too costly.