PRAGUE, July 8 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice and her Czech counterpart Karel Schwarzenberg signed here on
Tuesday a missile shield treaty despite protests from the Czech public and
Russia, and she called it a key treaty of 21st century.
Rice said the signature of the main treaty on the
stationing of a U.S. radar base on Czech soil is important not only for the
United States and the Czech Republic, but also for NATO and the whole
international community.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
(L) and her Czech counterpart Karel Schwarzenberg sign the main treaty on
the stationing of a U.S. radar base on Czech soil in Prague July 8, 2008.
(Xinhua/Ceteka) Photo
Gallery>>>
She
emphasized that the threat of a missile attack is not "imaginary" as Iran
continues enriching uranium.
The document signed on Tuesday is a key treaty of the
21st century, she said, adding that it unites friends and allies faced with the
same risk.
The planned U.S. radar base on Czech soil will be
useful even by itself, Rice said after signing the treaty on the radar with
Schwarzenberg.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
(L) and her Czech counterpart Karel Schwarzenberg talk with each other
after signing the main treaty on the stationing of a U.S. radar base on
Czech soil in Prague July 8, 2008. (Xinhua/Ceteka) Photo Gallery>>>
The U.S. Navy can also protect the Czech Republic and
the whole territory with the AEGIS system thanks to the radar base, Rice pointed
out.
Schwarzenberg said that the treaty is an expression
of the Czech Republic's consistent security policy and that it will promote the
security not only of the country, but of Europe and the whole Euro-Atlantic
area.
The main treaty still needs to be approved by Czech
parliament and President Vaclav Klaus. Negotiations about SOFA agreement that
defines legal status of the U.S. soldiers at the planned radar base have not
been completed yet.
Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek (R)
meets with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in Prague, capital of
the Czech Republic, on July 8, 2008. Rice arrived here on Tuesday to sign
a treaty on the stationing of a U.S. radar base in the East European
country with her Czech counterpart Karel Schwarzenberg. . (Xinhua
Photo) Photo
Gallery>>>
The
United States plans to build a radar base in the Brdy military district, some 90
kilometers southwest of the Czech capital Prague, along with an interceptor
missile base in neighboring Poland.
Apart from the radar treaties, the United States and
the Czech Republic are also ready to sign an agreement on cooperation in
technology and industry.
Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek has said he
considers the technical agreement far more important than the radar deal, noting
that the United States has similar agreements only with a few countries such as
Australia, Britain and Japan.
However, a recent opinion poll showed that up to 70
percent of Czech citizens oppose the project. Several hundred people rallied in
Prague's Wenceslas Square late Tuesday to protest against the signature of the
radar base treaty.
The demonstrators called on the Czech government to
resign. They said Prime Minister Topolanek is a liar and Rice a war criminal.
The opponents called for a referendum on the radar
base to be held. They said some 100,000 people have signed a referendum
petition.
Russia is also strongly opposed to the missile
defense system plan in eastern Europe, saying the plan poses a threat to its
strategic interests.
Russia still perceives the U.S. move as a threat to
its own security, Russian General Yevgeni Buzhinski said in Lidovy dum,
headquarters of the Czech opposition Social Democrats (CSSD), in Prague on
Tuesday.
Buzhinski, who is in charge of negotiations on the
issue with the United States, said his country still remains doubtful about the
alleged danger which has been used to justify the project.
The United States says the anti-missile system,
designed to target threats from countries like Iran, could not possibly pose any
danger to Russia considering its nuclear arsenal.
Meanwhile, the U.S. talks with Poland about the
anti-missile base have stalled with Warsaw demanding in return billions of U.S.
dollars for the modernization of its army.
On her trip to Prague, Rice told journalists that she
did not know when the talks with Poland could be closed. She conceded that a
long way is yet to be covered, responding to a journalist saying that the
anti-missile defense system is still in the stage of development.
MOSCOW, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Moscow would be forced to
respond to U.S. plans to place a missile defense radar in the Czech Republic,
the Russian Foreign Ministry said Tuesday after the signing of a U.S.-Czech
agreement.
"Given this situation, the Russian side will obviously
have to take appropriate measures to compensate for the growing potential of
threats to its national security. But this is not our choice," the ministry said
in a statement. Full story
U.S. President George W. Bush (R) meets
with Russian President Dmitriy Medvedev at the Group of Eight (G8)
Hokkaido Toyako Summit at The Windsor Hotel Toya Resort and Spa in Toyako,
July 7, 2008. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo) Photo
Gallery>>>
TOYAKO, Japan, July 7 (Xinhua) -- Russia and the United
States still disagreed on the deployment of a U.S. missile shield in eastern
Europe, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said ahead of the G8 summit in
northern Japan Monday.
"There are certain questions on our agenda where we
disagree, and these are the matters pertaining to Iran and North Korea. But then
certainly there are others with respect to European affairs and this missile
defense where we have differences," Medvedev said after his first meeting as
Russian head of state with his U.S. counterpart George W. Bush. Full story
WARSAW, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Poland is
finalizing negotiations on installing a U.S. missile defense base in the
country, Poland's Defense Minister Bogdan Klich said on Tuesday.
Speaking about Monday's talks between Poland's
Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski and U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
in Washington, Klich quoted Sikorski as saying that it was a "good
meeting." Full story
