Blog

 
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)

 
Preparations for the launch of Iran’s first nuclear plant, Bushehr, are in the final stage. According to the AFP, a Russian official said the launch will be irreversible by next February.
 
The plant, which will be run by Russia, is suspect. Western countries, including the U.S., believe Iran is developing nuclear weapons, and that the plant is a civilian cloak to hide those developments. Naturally, Iran denies it.
 
President Nicolas Sarkozy of France believes Iran is developing weapons, but a foreign minister spokesman told the AFP, “Nuclear weapons are not part of Iran’s defence doctrine.” 
 
While Russia has expressed disapproval of America’s plan to install missile defense bases in Poland and the Czech Republic, the country supposedly is “as worried as any Western country” about Iran acquiring nuclear weapons. How credible is this sentiment? In our opinion, it’s not credible at all.
 
In other news, the U.S. has pulled out of a civilian nuclear agreement with Russia. The agreement, signed in May, theoretically could have helped both countries increase nuclear trade and stop the proliferation of nuclear weapons. An excerpt from the White House press release:
 
“In view of recent actions by the Government of the Russian Federation incompatible with peaceful relations with its sovereign and democratic neighbor Georgia, I have determined that the determination regarding the proposed Agreement in Presidential Determination 2008-19 is no longer effective.”
 
Reuters reports that the withdrawal was “widely seen” as punitive action against Russia for invading Georgia, but the statement makes clear it definitely was. At some point in the future, things may change.
 
(Source: AFP and Reuters - Photo source: IranAtom.ru)