From: Yemane Natnael (yemane_natnael@yahoo.com)
Date: Sat Aug 23 2008 - 13:56:07 EDT
Missile defense backers now cite Russia threat
By DESMOND BUTLER
August 23, 2008
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. outrage over Russia's invasion of Georgia
could prompt Congress to speed up plans for a missile defense system in
eastern Europe.
As missile defense proponents push congressional
Democrats to drop funding restrictions, however, they appear to be
bolstering an argument made repeatedly by Moscow and rejected by
Washington: that the true target of the system is Russia.
Russia
has long been angered by U.S. plans to deploy 10 interceptors in Poland
and a radar system in the Czech Republic. Russia says interceptors will
target Russian missiles; the United States denies this, saying the
system is aimed at countering threats from Iran and North Korea.
After
agreeing with the Czech Republic in April, the Bush administration
faced hurdles to deploying the system. Negotiations with Poland had
bogged down, and the Democratic-led Congress probably would require
more testing for the interceptors before they could be deployed.
After
Russian troops entered Georgia this month, Polish and U.S. negotiators
quickly resolved their differences. The two countries signed an
agreement Wednesday.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice carefully avoided suggestions that the agreement was made possible by Russia's behavior.
"The timing, of course, is simply the timing of when the agreement was completed," she said.
Advocates of the system were less hesitant about linking missile defense plans to Russia."Russian
aggression played on the Polish public very strong and was a factor in
making this happen this quickly," said Riki Ellison, president of the
Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance, an advocacy group. Ellison spoke in
a telephone interview from the northern Polish town of Redzikowo, where
the interceptors would be based.
Republican lawmakers, pointing
to the Russian invasion, are pushing Democrats to drop the testing
requirements, which could add years of delay to plans.
"As
Russian ballistic missiles rain down on Georgia, we should honor our
commitment to allies in Poland and the Czech Republic," Rep. Mark Kirk,
R-Ill., said in a statement. Kirk said he would introduce legislation
to boost money for the program.
Republicans, including
presidential candidate John McCain, tend to be strong advocates of
missile defense plans. Democrats, including their candidate, Barack
Obama, have been more skeptical.
Democrats control both chambers
of Congress but in an election year do not want to appear weak on
national security. McCain took a tough stance immediately after Russia
sent troops into Georgia. Obama's initial response was more measured
and drew sharp criticism from Republicans.
But Rep. Ellen Tauscher, D-Calif., one of the authors of the restrictions, said Democrats will not bend on testing.
"The
events in Georgia have nothing to do with the interceptors the U.S. is
considering deploying in Poland, and Congress believes that this system
is untested and fails to defend against current and emerging threats,"
she said in a written response to questions from The Associated Press.
"Congress will not be funding an untested system, period," Tauscher said.
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jiJHDMtVv926cALJLaOy9_fZtOrgD92NSKM00
----[This List to be used for Eritrea Related News Only]----