Date
Author
Елена СУПОНИНА; Петр ИСКЕНДЕРОВ
Source
Preserved copy
Translated material
Anti-missile grave
Russia suspects the Pentagon of double play
An exciting military-political game has begun between Russia and the United States. The Americans seem to be inviting the Russians to participate in the construction of their missile defense system in Europe. And the Russians seem to agree. But both sides do it in such a way that the result is unlikely to result in cooperation. According to Vremya Novostey, the negotiations are difficult and in an atmosphere of mistrust, as evidenced by yesterday's visit to Moscow by the US Secretary of Defense, former CIA Director Robert Gates .Russia strongly opposes the creation of an American missile defense system on its borders. But Robert Gates yesterday officially invited the Russians to cooperate on this issue. Like, then the fears will disappear. Washington is willing to allow Russian officials to occasionally inspect future US missile defense bases in Poland and the Czech Republic. Moreover, according to our data, the Americans may even agree to the permanent presence of Russian specialists there. Another promise is to share the intelligence information received.
We must give credit: the Americans made a strong move and won in terms of image. From the outside it looks like this: Russia was concerned, in response it was invited to a partnership, but it does not agree and continues to criticize the US plans. “The times of the Cold War are over, and there is no sign of a return to them. We invite Russia to join our defense initiative as an equal participant,” Gates explained yesterday.
In fact, as Russian negotiators explained to our publication, the American proposals are “designed for the naive”: “These systems are still directed against Russia. Agreeing to this is like starting to dig your own grave.” For example, Washington claims that new bases in Europe will be aimed at protecting against threats from unpredictable countries such as Iran. But the Iranians do not have intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of threatening Europe, much less the United States. But Russia has such missiles.
But even if we assume the existence of an Iranian threat, then it would be more logical to build new missile defense systems not in Eastern Europe, but, say, in Turkey. And here Moscow would be ready to cooperate with the Americans, but on condition that they begin the construction of missile defense facilities together and from scratch, on an equal basis. In the meantime, Washington does not abandon the idea of locating bases in Poland and the Czech Republic , and does not offer equal cooperation. “We will not give Russia the right to block our programs,” the New York Times wrote recently about bases in Poland and the Czech Republic.
Let us remind you that the Americans plan to build a radar station (radar) on Czech territory. According to one option, it will appear at a military base in Brdy, 50 km southwest of Prague. In another way - in the Libau region, 250 km east of the Czech capital. The interceptor missiles themselves will be launched from Poland, where ten launchers will be located. Over five years, the United States will invest at least $3.5 billion in the project, ostensibly for protection against Iranian and North Korean missiles. And this is in addition to the global missile defense elements already existing in the United States - in Alaska, California and the Aleutian Islands. Yesterday, Robert Gates, on behalf of the entire Pentagon, invited the Russian military to visit these facilities.
According to Moscow, American plans will upset the balance of strategic forces in Europe and provoke a new arms race. “We also don’t slurp cabbage soup with our nostrils,” one knowledgeable Russian diplomat told VN, talking about Russia’s possible retaliatory measures. - If we don’t agree, then we will be obliged to build something in response. And offensive weapons are always cheaper than defensive ones.” Earlier, the Chief of the Russian General Staff, Army General Yuri Baluevsky, warned the Americans that Moscow would unilaterally withdraw from the Shorter and Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty.
Russia would really not like it to go to extremes. Therefore, negotiations are in full swing. The American guest met yesterday in Moscow with President Vladimir Putin, First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov, and Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov. “Everything is very good. The meetings were good,” Robert Gates responded to Sergei Ivanov’s question about his impressions of the discussions in Moscow.
Discussion of the topic will continue on Thursday in the Norwegian capital Oslo, where Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and other heads of foreign policy departments will attend the Russia-NATO Council. Our newspaper also learned about Ms. Rice's possible visit to Moscow in mid-May.
But not only in Russia, but also overseas are also skeptical about the possible results of this negotiation activity. “Most of the American proposals will never become a reality,” Nikolai Zlobin, director of Russian and Asian programs at the Washington Institute of World Security, admitted to VN. In his opinion, “for now we are talking about the initial testing of the soil. After all, the Americans were terribly surprised by the sharply negative Russian reaction to plans to deploy missile defense systems in Europe.”
Mr. Zlobin confirmed the information available to VN that the United States is even exploring the possibility of creating a joint Russian-American missile defense system in the Transcaucasus, in particular on the basis of the Gabala radar station in Azerbaijan. But he also called these projects “unrealizable,” suspecting that proposals for this were inspired by local elites in Azerbaijan or Georgia. In fact, this is not beneficial for either Moscow or Washington.
Nevertheless, our interlocutor notes: “The Americans understand well that it is not profitable for them to drive Russia into a corner. Therefore, they urgently began to look for options for cooperation. In the United States there are serious forces advocating cooperation with Russia in the nuclear field - these are former secretaries of state and defense ministers, mainly representing the Democratic Party. They are putting pressure on the Republicans, on the George Bush administration, but most importantly, they are preparing an agenda for the future US administration.”
The American Secretary of Defense yesterday talked with the Russian leadership not only about missile defense. He disappointed Moscow with the statement that “the United States is not ready to sign a long-term agreement with Russia in the field of strategic and offensive weapons.” And he also confirmed Russia’s fears, admitting that Western countries “will not ratify the adapted Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe.”
Despite this, Vladimir Putin found the strength to maintain his presence of mind and half-jokingly inform Gates in the morning that he would talk on the phone with US President George Bush in the afternoon and at the same time “convey him the best wishes from his minister from Moscow.” Robert Gates pretended to be moved: “I spoke to President Bush yesterday morning before leaving here, he asked me to convey his best wishes, but I did not realize that you would be able to tell him so quickly how I am doing here.” And he concluded: “Together we can achieve a lot.”