WORLD / Europe
US: Ivanov's comments 'unfortunate'
(Reuters)
Updated: 2007-07-06 09:21
WASHINGTON - The United States said on Thursday it was "unfortunate" that
a Russian official suggested Russia might move its missiles closer to
western Europe if its proposals on a planned missile shield in Europe are
ignored.
Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov attends the
International Economic Forum in St. Petersburg June 9, 2007. [Reuters]
The United States plans to place 10 interceptors in Europe and radar in
the Czech Republic as part of a shield designed to protect Europe from
missile attacks by states such as Iran and North Korea. Russia has
harshly criticized the plan.
At a meeting with US President George W. Bush this week, Russian
President Vladimir Putin proposed Russia and NATO share data about
missile launches from "rogue states," saying this would remove the need
for the Polish and Czech installations.
On Wednesday Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov appeared
to suggest that if the United States accepted Putin's plan then Russia
would not place missiles in its western-most province of Kaliningrad.
"If our proposals are accepted, the need will disappear for Russia to
deploy new missile weapons in the European part of the country, including
in Kaliningrad region," Interfax news agency quoted Ivanov as saying
during a trip to Uzbekistan.
Ivanov, in overall charge of Russia's defense sector and a leading
candidates to become the country's next president, did not elaborate.
Kaliningrad lies on the Baltic Sea coast and is surrounded by Lithuania
and Poland. It is not connected by land to the rest of Russia and the
city of Kaliningrad is far closer to Warsaw than to Moscow.
"Mr. Ivanov's comments were unfortunate but I don't think it distracts us
from the fact that we are having a constructive conversation with the
Russians," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters,
calling the remarks "not constructive."
"It reminds me of, to borrow a line from the Cold War, from our own
domestic politics, 'There they go again'," he added, alluding to then
presidential candidate Ronald Reagan's dismissive comment "There you go
again" against then President Jimmy Carter during the 1980 US
presidential campaign.
"You're going to have some of this rhetoric in public. But what's
important is that we try to come up with a constructive dialogue, and try
to come up with some constructive solutions to addressing what is a very
real threat," he added.
McCormack said Washington and Moscow planned to continue talks on the
issue, including at a meeting of their foreign and defense ministers in
September or October. Earlier, US officials had said these talks were
likely in September.
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