Russia Knocks U.S. Plans for Missile Shield

Russia yesterday accused the United States of failing to consider its concerns while moving forward with development of a Europe-based missile shield.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Andrei Nesterenko said in a statement that “it is already clear” that the Obama administration’s revised antimissile plan “in essence posits the deployment in Europe of a missile defense architecture without taking into account Russia’s justified interests and concerns.”

Last fall, Washington announced that it was scrapping a Bush-era program for missile defense in favor of a “phased adaptive approach” that would entail fielding sea- and land-based version of the Standard Missile 3 interceptor around the continent as a hedge against potential short- and medium-range missiles fired from Iran. Moscow has worried that the location of shield infrastructure in nations along its borders would threaten the Russian nuclear deterrent.

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