US missile defense site likely in central Europe
Poland, Czech Republic hold talks with US on 'Son of Star Wars' locations.
The US Department of Defense is negotiating with Poland and the Czech Republic over positioning a
missile defense site and related advanced radar stations in central Europe, reports the
Guardian.
Pentagon officers have been scouting the mountain territory of southern Poland, pinpointing suitable sites for two or three radar stations connected to the so-called "Son of Star Wars" program... . Senior officials in Prague also confirmed that talks were under way over the establishment of American advanced radar stations in the Czech Republic as part of the missile shield project. From its first days in office the Bush administration planned to build a missile interceptor shield to defend the US and its allies from rogue missile attacks. Two sites are currently being built in the US - one in California, the other in Alaska. A site in Poland would be the first outside US terrority and the only one in Europe.
Original mention of the plan and suggestions of European basing at the advent of the Bush administration "
caused some consternation in Europe when the US unilaterally pulled out of the anti-ballistic missile treaty, seen as a key non-proliferation agreement between Russia and the US," reports
euobserver.com.
Russia has voiced concerns about Washington's plans and the hosting of sites, particularly missile sites, so close to their borders is likely to increase opposition.
The Lexington-Herald Leader reports the facility would consist of concrete
reinforced underground silos,
housing interceptor-tipped missiles that would be fired at enemy missiles as they soared through space. A network of powerful radar would guide the interceptors into collisions with their targets. A launch site in [either of] the former Soviet-bloc nations would be able to defend the United States and its European allies from attacks by small numbers of missiles fired from the Middle East, US officials said. The current European talks have been
going on for eight months, reports
Arms Control Today, the Washington based journal of the Arms Control Association. The Pentagon's Missile Defense Agency (MDA) requested $35 million for "long lead activity for [ground-based interceptors] at
a potential third site," in its 2005 proposal, reports
Arms Control Today. And if a decision were made to build a missile "interceptor" base in Europe, the US "might begin construction on the such a site as early as 2006," says
Arms Control Today. In related missile defense related matters, the US and Australia pledged last week
to work together to develop, test, and possibly operate a system to shoot down attacking ballistic missiles, reported
Reuters.
The Pentagon plans to broaden the system and to layer in interceptors based at sea, lasers aboard modified jumbo jets and possibly space-based rockets that could attack all three phases of an enemy missile's flight. Australia will join South Korea, Japan, Britain, Germany, Israel, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway and Spain among countries working with the United States on missile defense, a US official said. Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin after his election informed American officials that, "he would soon decide
whether Canada will join the US-led missile defense program," reports the
National Post.
Sources on both sides of the border indicate privately that Canadian participation is seen as a near-certainty, and a government website has already begun extolling the benefits of the missile shield. The first step toward Canadian participation in the project would require expanding the Canada-US Norad program to link existing warning systems based in Colorado to newly constructed missile installations. A decision must be made before October, when the first of up to 20 interceptors will be inaugurated at military sites in California and Alaska. There are "fears in Ottawa" reports the
Post, that "refusing to join would trigger the demise of Norad, which for decades has been a backbone of Canadian defense policy." Meanwhile, back in the USA, the MDA announced the first phase of construction at the
Fort Greely, Alaska missile site was completed last Saturday, reports the
Fairbanks Daily News.
Completion of major construction at Fort Greely and the arrival of interceptors represents the first time the United States can claim to have any type of defense system against an intercontinental missile attack, said Major Gen. John Holly, director of the Ground-Based Midcourse Defense Program.
Also...
•
Son of Star Wars (
Mother Jones)
•
Q&A: Son of Star Wars (
BBC)
•
Missile shield will destabilize region, Latham says (
Australian Broadcast)
•
How missile defense systems will work (
Howstuffworks)
•
Son of Star Wars - the next generation - the Fort Greely and HAARP connection (
Brother Jonathan Gazette)
• Feedback appreciated. E-mail
Jim Bencivenga
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