Russia: Missile Defense, Asteroids, and Deadlock – Strategic Defense of the Earth
Russia Beyond the Headlines
October 31, 2011
Russian Ambassador to NATO Dmitry Rogozin has proposed creating a joint U.S.-Russia missile defense system, which in addition to its defense capabilities, would also protect the Earth against asteroids. The recent unexpected proposal could help the two countries break a vicious cycle.
The project is code-named Strategic Defense of the Earth. It has been introduced to President Dmitry Medvedev who called it “interesting.” The president tasked Rogozin and foreign policy advisor Sergei Prikhodko with finalizing the project.
Aside from this proposal, the Russian-U.S. standoff over missile defense is looking increasingly like a never-ending saga.
In 2001, shortly after withdrawing from the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missle Treaty, the George W. Bush administration announced plans to deploy interceptor missiles in Poland and a radar defense system in the Czech Republic, which Moscow saw as a threat to its strategic security. Now, 10 years later, international experts admit that negotiations on missile defense have reached an impasse.
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