Polish FM: Russia threats must be considered in US missile defense talks

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Poland's foreign minister said Russian threats have to be considered as his country weighs a proposal from the United States to install missile defense interceptors on Polish territory. In talks with US officials this week, Radek Sikorski is pressing for security aid from the United States as part of any deal. Polish officials have suggested that the aid could come in the form of shorter range anti-missile systems that could be used to counter threats from neighboring countries including Russia. "Poland is a part of both the EU and NATO where we take democratic values, procedures, institutions, respect for human rights for granted, and we border some countries where trends are not necessarily in trends that we welcome," Sikorski told The Associated Press on Thursday. Russia has stridently opposed the missile defense plan and has threatened to retarget nuclear missiles at Poland to counter what it sees as a US attempt to undermine the Russian military deterrent. The United States says the proposed system is intended to protect Western countries from missiles fired from Iran and would be impotent against Russia's massive arsenal.