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Russian analyst plays down fears over new U.S. anti-missile plan

Russian analyst plays down fears over new U.S. anti-missile plan
Russian analyst plays down fears over new U.S. anti-missile plan - Sputnik International
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A senior Russian disarmament expert played down on Monday concerns that the U.S. leader's new missile defense initiative could prove more dangerous than the previous Central Europe missile shield plans.

MOSCOW, September 21 (RIA Novosti) - A senior Russian disarmament expert played down on Monday concerns that the U.S. leader's new missile defense initiative could prove more dangerous than the previous Central Europe missile shield plans.

Barack Obama said on Thursday he was abandoning plans for a missile shield in Poland and the Czech Republic, which Russia had denounced as a threat to its security.

He instead announced plans for a partly sea-based missile defense system, which would focus on protecting Europe from short and medium-range Iranian missiles, rather than defending the United States from longer-range missiles that Iran might develop in the future.

Alexander Pikayev said the U.S. has simply scaled down its missile defense programs, and that skeptics should not paint an "apocalyptic picture" of Washington cancelling plans for 10 interceptor missiles in Poland, only to deploy "dozens, hundreds or even thousands of more effective ones" in the future.

However, Pikayev said all weapons are a potential threat, and that Russia's military should monitor the situation, while also looking into possible countermeasures.

Plans for an anti-missile system in Central Europe had been aggressively pursued by the George W. Bush administration, and were one of the main irritants in relations with Russia. Obama's decision to give the plans up has been widely seen as a concession to Russia as part of the two countries' pledge "to reset" their ties.

Missile defense remains a controversial issue in military circles, with many experts saying the technology for intercepting ballistic missiles - often compared to hitting a bullet with a bullet - is still a long way off.

The U.S. Missile Defense Agency says interception of incoming missiles "has been successfully demonstrated in test after test," while critics say the tests depend on detailed advance planning and information on the incoming missile, which would be unavailable in the event of a real strike.

 

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