Russia warns of US missile shield retaliation
Pastor Dale Morgan
Russia warns of US missile shield retaliation*
From correspondents in Moscow
December 15, 2007 11:57pm
Article from: Agence France-Presse
THE planned deployment of US interceptor missiles in Poland could
trigger a missile strike by Russia if those missiles are ever used, the
Russian army's chief of staff has warned.
"We are talking about the possibility of a retaliatory strike being
triggered by the mistaken classification of an interceptor missile,"
Yury Baluyevsky said at a press conference broadcast on state television.
Baluyevsky explained that an interceptor missile launched by the United
States could be mistaken by Russia's automatic defence system for a
ballistic missile aimed against Russia.
"Who is going to take responsibility for an automatic triggering of the
system if an interceptor missile is launched from Polish territory
through Russia to strike down an Iranian missile?"
"I don't mean to scare anyone but this isn't a scare story.... It's a
technical detail that could affect the military stability of the world,"
Baluyevsky said.
The United States has outlined plans to site 10 interceptor missiles in
Poland and a radar base in the Czech Republic by 2012 as part of a
missile defence shield aimed at a possible missile threat from Iran,
according to Washington.
Russia has said that there is no such threat and that the missile shield
can therefore only be aimed at Russia. Russia has vowed to take measures
to defend its security against the US plans.