Envoy Says Russia Should Be Out Of Range For NATO Missile Defence
The Russian permanent representative to NATO, Dmitriy Rogozin, who is in charge of cooperation with NATO on missile defence, has said that NATO missile defence must not have the capability to shoot down targets over Russia. The corporate-owned Russian news agency Interfax quoted Rogozin as saying at a round table in the State Duma on 16 May that that NATO should limit the range its anti-missiles to its own territory. He added that Russia needed clear guarantees from NATO but the best security guarantee for Russia was its own nuclear potential. Rogozin also voiced concerns over the possibility of the eventual globalization of the missile defence system, e.g. it covering Russia's Far East. The following is text of report by Interfax, subheadings have been inserted editorially:
Moscow, 16 May: The effect of US and NATO missile defence must not extend to the territory of the Russian Federation, the Russian permanent representative to NATO, Dmitriy Rogozin, has said.
Russia must be out of range for NATO missile defence
"We are not asking anyone to sneak in and mark our territory," Rogozin, who heads the working group under the Russian Presidential Administration for cooperation with NATO on missile defence, said at a meeting of the round table in the State Duma on Monday (16 May). Prospects for the creation of a European missile defence system were discussed at this meeting.
Rogozin stressed that the striking power of NATO missile defence "must not sneak into the territory of the Russian Federation and NATO, as well as the USA, must not have the ability to destroy any air or space targets over the sovereign territory of the Russian Federation".
Rogozin pointed out that NATO does not transfer its right to supply security services to those who are not members of this organization. "And, after all, we do not want for them to resolve our security issues," Rogozin said.
He noted that on the map overlays that have been prepared within the framework of the alliance, the engagement range of US interceptor-missiles, if they are positioned in Northern Europe, reaches the Ural Mountains. "If you want to ensure your security and the security of allies in Europe, do reduce the range of your system to your own territory, we have not given the authority to defend us, we will somehow manage our risks and threats by ourselves," Rogozin stressed.
Guarantees
He added that one was still not managing to get from NATO direct concrete and substantiated answers to clear questions posed by the Russian side. In particular, Moscow is interested in on what conditions missile defence in Europe will be set up.
In this connection Rogozin said that we must have reliable guarantees that this system, which is supposedly created against the "bad guys", will not be directed against Russia's strategic nuclear potential.
Rogozin warned that these guarantees must be based on the criteria of the assessment of the system that is being created, on the understanding of the technical capabilities of the missile defence system, the locations where it will be stationed, the speed of intercepting missiles and their number. So far we do not have answers to these questions, he noted.
Russian must receive guarantees that it is not directed (against Russia) and these guarantees must be clear if we are not involved in this system; alternatively, we should be inside this system, Rogozin thinks.
Best guarantee for Russia its own nuclear potential
(In a separate report the agency quoted Rogozin as saying that the best guarantee of Russia's security is its ability to implement its own strategic nuclear plan when necessary.
"Whatever guarantees were receive, the best guarantee of our security is our own potential - and not just the political but, first of all, military-political potential ," Rogozin said. He said that in its relations with allies Russia must always follow the principle "trust but check".
Europe needs voice of its own
In any case, Rogozin said, a responsible approach that guarantees security of one's country is to work on one's programmes developing one's own weapons and have "one's own strategic nuclear plan, which is independent from anyone and which is capable of responding to any aggression from an individual state or a group of states". This is the only way to keep one's powder dry, Rogozin said.
"Europe cannot observe indifferently how someone's foreign military infrastructure is being rolled out on its territory," Rogozin suggested. According to him, "The Europeans cannot and should not hide behind the backs of even their most reliable allies - the Americans. They should have a voice of their own".
Danger of NATO missile defence globalizing
According to the agency, Rogozin also said that the US missile defence system could go beyond Europe, become global and extend its range to Russia's Far East.
"Here we are talking about the European segment of a global system (within the framework of the creation of European missile defence - Interfax), parts of which are not only in Europe - a similar system could perfectly well be rolled out in Russia's Far East: a system of this kind would be deployed on the territory of Alaska, which is the national territory of the US," Rogozin said.
In this connection, he noted that there were no guarantees that everything would be limited to the creation of European missile defence and that after 2020 this system would not be scaled up and become global.
In the view of the diplomat, this system has no restrictions either in space or time and "this is only one of the segments of a more complex and more important system, the limits and boundaries of which cannot be fathomed as yet".
"The Russians are coming" has changed to "the missiles are coming"
Another report by the agency quoted Rogozin as saying that the Americans deliberately nominate enemies of Europe, such as Iran, against whom they plan to defend it with their missile defence system. He said that the enemy NATO needs to counter has to be "global, dangerous and, first of all, it has to be a traditional, i.e. a military enemy," Rogozin noted and added that one could not justify creating missile defence against secret services or terrorist underground of some sort. He said that US was essentially following a Hollywood scenario where the Americans are saving the world, in this case the European world.
"Missile defence is a new ideology, which has replaced the old thesis that used to be: 'The Russians are coming'," Rogozin said. Now, he said, there is a new version: "The missiles are coming'. Thus, Europe needs defending and this is how the Americans justify their coming to Europe, Rogozin said.)
Keyword Tags:
