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Will President-Elect Barack Obama be good for U.S. and Russian relations? President Dmitry Medvedev seems to think so.

Medvedev hopes to meet with Obama to discuss our country’s agreements with Poland and the Czech Republic to install missile defense shields in those countries. The bases will provide a defense against attacks from rogue states like Iran, but Russia perceives the bases as a direct threat.

Earlier this month, the Russian president said his country would deploy missiles near Poland in retaliation. According to the Los Angeles Times, Medvedev said Russia has no plans to retaliate with missiles but “reserves the right to respond.” With Obama in office, Medvedev seems more willing to discuss the matter in lieu of a promise to cancel the planned bases.

Meanwhile, French president Nicolas Sarkozy was at one point favorable to the plans. After speaking to Medvedev last week, however, he said the systems would do ” nothing to bring security and complicates things.” Regardless, NATO still supports the U.S. in its endeavors in eastern Europe.

“The decision taken at Bucharest is very clear and we are continuing to analyse different options relating to missile defence,” NATO spokesperson Carmen Romero said.

Obama has not said whether he’ll move forward with either missile defense shield. We’ll keep you posted on the developments.

(Sources: Los Angeles Times and Reuters)

 
President Ronald Reagan got the ball rolling on the development of the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) with his Strategic Defense Initiative in 1983. Twenty-five years after he proposed that the U.S. focus on strategic defense rather than offense, the number of countries with ballistic missiles and nuclear weapons has increased.

Thirty-six years ago (1972), nine countries had ballistic missile capability, including China, Germany, Russia, and the US. In 2007, over 20 countries had this capability, including India, Iran, Pakistan, and Turkey.

In 1972, only six countries could be described as nuclear states: China, France, Israel, Russia, the UK, and the US. In 2007, three countries were added to the list: India, North Korea, Pakistan.

Some of these countries are allies; others are not. It’s up the MDA to develop missile defense technology and to train a workforce committed to protecting us from foreign enemies.

1. The Missile Age 1972 (PDF)

2. The New Missile Age 2007 (PDF)

3. Nuclear States in the Missile Age 1972 (PDF)

4. Nuclear States in the New Missile Age 2007 (PDF)