President Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev remain divided over a U.S. plan to construct a European Missile Defense system to protect Europe and the United States against missile attack by Middle Eastern nations such as Iran.
They discussed “new possibilities” for cooperating on missile defense, without reaching any agreement.
The most that the two leaders did was to agree to further discussions of possible Russian cooperation or participation in the EMD system, if it is built. Obama and Medvedev are to confer further when Obama visits Moscow in July.
That stance from Medvedev was far gentler than previous comments by him and Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, who last year threatened to use Iskander missiles to bomb the EMD system into oblivion if it is built.
The EMD system would use a radar in the Czech Republic (which might be installed even if the EMD system isn’t built), while silos in Poland would contain EMD interceptor missiles based on interceptors used in the Ground-base Midcourse Defense (GMD) system already installed in Alaska and California.
Both the EMD and GMD missile defense programs are led by The Boeing Co. [BA].
Obama said that moves by nations such as Iran to gain missile and nuclear technologies are unhelpful, but that if Iran surrendered those programs and systems, it would lessen the need to build the EMD.
Some missile defense proponents are concerned Obama may strike a not-so-grand bargain with Russia in which the United States would agree not to build the missile shield.
Obama is seen desiring to drop the EMD system, along with other missile defense programs, freeing money to be used for other purposes. (Please see stories in this issue.)
More broadly, Obama and Medvedev agreed that further nuclear arms reductions would be desirable, while saying they wish to improve the often frayed U.S.-Russian relationship.
The two leaders also condemned the then-impending North Korean launch of a long-range missile. (Please see full story in this issue.)