Czech Senate approves US missile defense base

The upper chamber of Parliament has approved a deal with Washington to place a US missile defense installation on Czech territory. The deal still has to be approved by the lower chamber, where the vote is expected to be close because the governing coalition has too few seats to guarantee its passage. The Senate on Thursday approved both treaties involved in the deal - the main bilateral treaty allowing the United States to build a radar base near Prague and the second, "complementary" treaty that deals with the legal status of US soldiers to be deployed at the base.