Sept. 18, 2009
Obama's foreign policy has employed a starkly different tone than
George W. Bush's, emphasizing engagement and cooperation rather than
go-it-alone confrontation. Even so, analysts of various political
stripes hadn't seen many big differences on substance.
Until now. Obama's decision Wednesday to scuttle a costly and technically
challenged long-range missile-defense system in Europe marks his most
significant reversal of a Bush foreign policy priority. It could change
the dynamic of what has been an increasingly tense relationship between
the U.S. and Russia, which viewed the Bush plans for missile defenses in
Poland and the Czech Republic as a threat. http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/obama-scraps-bush-missile-defense-plan/story?id=8604357
(CNN)The
U.S. launched a new ground-based missile defense system in Romania
Thursday, sparking fresh tensions with Russia, which quickly blasted the
system as a threat to its security.
The
system, to be operated by NATO, is getting up and running nearly a
decade after the U.S. first announced plans to do so, only to encounter
pushback from Russia. The U.S. has long insisted that the shield is
directed against rogue states like Iran and not intended to target
Moscow's missiles, but Russian officials have slammed the move as an
"attempt to destroy the strategic balance" in Europe.
"The
United States' Aegis ashore system is declared certified for
operations," NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Thursday at
the ceremony launching the system.
"Missile defense is for defense," he added. "It does not undermine or weaken Russia's strategic nuclear deterrent."
Russia
has described the U.S. anti-missile shield in Europe as a "threat" and
says it is taking "protective measures" to guard against it, the
country's state news agency TASS reported.
President
Barack Obama scrapped the George W. Bush administration's planned
bilateral deployment of a different system to Poland and the Czech
Republic and has instead pursued a NATO-centric approach using alternate
technology.
http://www.cnn.com/2016/05/11/politics/nato-missile-defense-romania-poland/
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