Russia warns of ‘dead end’ in missile defence row

Russia has warned that it may launch military strikes against NATO’s new missile defence system if Moscow considers it a serious threat to its security.

Army Chief-of-Staff General Nikolai Makarov told an international conference on missile defence in Moscow how Russia would respond by targeting Nato bases in Poland and Romania:

“The deployment of new attacking weapons in southern and north-western Russia for the destruction of missile defence complexes, including the deployment of Iskander missiles in the Kaliningrad region, is one of several possible options for the destruction of European missile defence infrastructure.”

The missile defence row has harmed US-Russian relations over the past decade. The system’s operational readiness is set to be announced at NATO’s summit in Chicago in May 20.

“We of course take Russian concerns very seriously and want to hear all the details of their arguments,” said Alexander Vershbow, NATO Deputy Secretary-General.

“But at the same time, we remain convinced that, from a tactical point of view, the Russian analysis falls short in many respects,” he added.

At the Moscow conference, Russia showed computer simulation models to illustrate how NATO’s missile defence system threatens its security.

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