In Prague, Biden shops toned-down missile shield to Czechs, Poles

Russia’s 2008 war with Georgia and a spat with Ukraine last winter over natural-gas shipments all deepened Central and Eastern European leaders' concerns about the Kremlin.

In Warsaw Wednesday, amid much backslapping and smiles, Biden assured Polish officials that they will figure in any future missile-defense plans. The plan currently taking shape calls for SM-3 missiles to be based in Eastern Europe.

In an interview with the Polish daily “Rzeczpospolita,” Biden assured the Poles that warming relations with Moscow do not mean Washington is throwing Central Europe “overboard.”

After talks with Biden, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk – whom Biden mistakenly referred to twice as “Mr. President,” according to the Polish media – said the updated US missile-defense plan sounded “interesting” and that “Poland was eager to take part.”

Eugeniusz Smolar, the director of the Center for International Relations in Warsaw, told the Associated Press that Poland had no problem accepting the new plan.

"This proposal is much more Europe oriented because the new system is to deal more with the medium- and short-range threats, and this is exactly what Poland has been seeking," Smolar said.

Czech Deputy Foreign Minister Tomas Pojar also said his country is ready to move forward on the new plan. “We said we were ready to further negotiate on the issue and are ready to take part in establishing a new modified missile defense system," Mr. Pojar told Russia’s RIA Novosti on Wednesday.

Biden’s Czech visit came amid fresh Czech intelligence reports that Russian spies are more active than ever in the Czech Republic

The country’s intelligence service, BIS, reports that Russian espionage has not been focused on the planned US missile-defense shield but on the country’s nuclear industry. According to the BIS, Moscow is looking to extend its commercial influence within the Czech industry.

According to Czech media, Biden plans to discuss with Czech officials a potential bid by US power-giant Westinghouse to build a new nuclear reactor at the country's Temelin nuclear site. So far, Russia has submitted the only bid.

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