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USA to deploy another missle defense system ... in Turkey
Well, well ... so who is brewing Cold War this time around? Who is spreading bases, troops and military gear? Who is it NATO really against by continuously expanding eastward, towards Russian borders? What is the next country (near Russia) to receive a missile defense shield - Georgia, Azerbaijan, Ukraine, Kazakhstan - make your bets.
http://article.wn.com/view/2008/03/...n_addition_to_/
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USA to deploy another radar system in Turkey in addition to Poland and Czech Republic
The US administration has been conducting secret talks on the deployment of a mobile radar of its missile defense system in another European country - Turkey. The USA may start official negotiations on the matter during the NATO summit. For the time being it is known that US Defense Secretary Robert Gates touched upon the issue during his recent visit to Turkey. The new plans of the US administration may seriously aggravate its relations with Moscow. The fact of USA's negotiations with Turkey... |
http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/...p?enewsid=98659
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Gates, Turkish leaders held missile defense talks, US says
U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates and top Turkish military and civilian leaders discussed American plans for a missile defense system to counter Iran during his visit to Ankara late February, the Pentagon said Monday.
Asked at a briefing if the missile defense was an agenda item during Gates' talks in Turkey, Pentagon Spokesman Geoff Morrell admitted that it was.
"The focus of the talks at the time primarily dealt with the [Turkish] cross-border operation into northern Iraq, but missile defense did come up during the course of our talks, not only with the Turkish military, but with President [Abdullah] Gül and Prime Minister [Recep Tayyip] Erdoðan," Morrell said, although he added: "Not that it was so much an issue here."
The spokesman declined to provide other details, saying: "It was a subject of discussion, but I don't think we want to get into specifics at this point."
The U.S. general overseeing the construction of the multi-billion dollar missile shield against Iran said one month ago that in addition to planned capabilities in the Czech Republic and Poland, Washington was also seeking cooperation with Ankara for a third missile defense site in Turkey.
A powerful, "forward based" X-band radar station could go in southeastern Europe, possibly in Turkey, the Caucasus or the Caspian Sea region, Lt. Gen. Henry Obering, head of Pentagon's Missile Defense Agency, told a defense conference in Washington on Feb. 12.
"This is very mobile, transportable, so it's not something we have to deal with immediately," Obering was quoted as saying by Reuters report at the time. "It's something we can deal with downstream."
The United States is working with Poland and the Czech Republic for the first two European antimissile sites it has been seeking. The Czechs are planned to host a major radar while interceptor missiles would be deployed in Poland.
Washington says the plan is to counter a possible missile strike from Iran, although Russia is skeptical over U.S. intentions and strongly opposes the system's construction in two of its former satellites.
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http://english.pravda.ru/world/amer...88-usa_turkey-0
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The US administration has been conducting secret talks on the deployment of a mobile radar of its missile defense system in another European country – Turkey. The USA may start official negotiations on the matter during the NATO summit. For the time being it is known that US Defense Secretary Robert Gates touched upon the issue during his recent visit to Turkey. The new plans of the US administration may seriously aggravate its relations with Moscow.
The fact of USA’s negotiations with Turkey has been officially confirmed only on March 13, 2008. Pentagon Press Secretary Geoff Morrell told reporters of Gates’s recent visit to Ankara, the capital of Turkey. US and Turkish officials discussed the military operation of the Turkish Army in Iraq. In addition, Morrell said, the parties discussed plans on the establishment of the missile defense system in Turkey.
John Rood, acting Undersecretary of State, previously rejected the fact of the negotiations. Rood particularly stated in Washington that the USA was not planning any missile defense talks with any countries other than Poland and the Czech Republic.
As it turns out, Robert Gates urged Turkey to cooperate in the creation of the third center of the missile defense system. The Pentagon head promised to render financial help to Turkey in terms of army modernization. According to Gates, investments in Turkey’s defense sector may reach one billion dollars.
The US-based Missile Defense Agency intends to deploy a mobile radar system in Turkey, the Austrian newspaper Die Presse wrote. For the time being, the USA uses only one such radar, which is located in California.
Apparently, the systems, which the USA intends to build in Poland and the Czech Republic, will not be able to protect all allies. Greece, Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey may suffer from a possible missile attack from Iran, US officials believe. The NATO summit is to discuss the problem at a meeting in Bucharest, in April.
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