Senator Richard Lugar on Canceled Missile Defense Shields
The Washington Times quotes Senator Richard Lugar on the president’s decision to drop plans to build missile defense shields in Poland and the Czech Republic. “The missile announcement was unfortunate in my judgment in the way it was handled.”
A member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Lugar spoke at the bipartisan Atlantic Council, a think tank in the nation’s capital. He said the missile defense shields would have protected the region from Iranian attacks, but that wasn’t the main reason they needed to be deployed. The shields were needed because of a “waning confidence” in NATO’s commitment to protect members.
President Barack Obama said the previous missile shields were designed for long-range missiles from Iran, but Iran will more likely develop shorter-range missiles. He claims the new defense system would better protect the region.
One of the problems with Obama’s rationale is that it pleases Russia. That, in itself, is reason to be suspicious. While the U.S. is overhauling missile shield plans, Russia has given us nothing in return, and we suspect the former Soviet Union never will.
Lugar expressed similar concerns. He believes Russia is nostalgic about its former glory, and Obama’s move has only played into it. But the administration believes our allies should be grateful. “The Poles, Czechs and European allies should and will feel better about their defense under the new program as it addresses an emerging threat – Iran’s medium range missiles – that the previous program of record simply did not cover.”
The fact that Russia is pleased with the new plans sends up red flags.
Tags: Barack Obama, Czech Republic, Iran, Poland, Richard Lugar, Russia