BELGIUM: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says will study U.S. proposals for planned missile shields

Record ID: 862064

  • Title: BELGIUM: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says will study U.S. proposals for planned missile shields
  • Date: 23rd April 2013
  • Summary: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM (APRIL 23, 2013) (REUTERS) JOURNALISTS AND LAVROV DURING NEWS BRIEFING JOURNALIST LISTENING TO TRANSLATION LAVROV LEAVING NEWS BRIEFING
  • Embargoed: 8th May 2013 13:00
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  • Location: Belgium
  • City:
  • Country: Belgium
  • Topics: International Relations,Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA8T5B9YAJUQ38TCY9N6IYU0KHZ
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  • Story Text: Russia is studying changes to the U.S. missile defence programme, but still wants guarantees that the system would not be used against Russia, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Tuesday (April 23) at a NATO Russia council in Brussels.
    U.S. and NATO plans to build an anti-missile shield around Western Europe to protect against attack from Iran and North Korea have been a major irritant in relations with Russia, which fears the system's interceptors could eventually shoot down its long-range nuclear missiles.
    Lavrov said he discussed the issue in his talks at NATO headquarters on Tuesday where he met NATO ministers, including his U.S. counterpart John Kerry.

    "We are studying the proposals conveyed by the American side, they will be considered against the backdrop of current plans of the United States and of course against our Russian interests. Our position is well-known, we are ready for dialogue, but cooperation can only be equitable with clear-cut guarantees that all these systems are not targeted against countries in the NATO region," Lavrov said.
    The Pentagon said last month it would station additional missile interceptors in Alaska in response to North Korean threats and at the same time forgo a new type of interceptor that would have been deployed in Europe.
    This latter type of missile had caused most concern to Moscow, which believed it could be used to shoot down Russian strategic missiles. U.S. officials hope the change will end the standoff with Moscow.
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