Is US anti-missile system on Polish soil good for Poland?
US defense experts suggest that an interceptor missile base be stationed on Polish soil. Poland has yet to say yes. Polish Premier Jaroslaw Kaczynski says that if Warsaw agrees to a anti-missile shield on Polish soil, it should also serve as a security blanket for us as well. Premier Kaczynski thinks that Russia doesn't see it as a threat for its own security, but that the shield would place Poland in a higher position in Europe.
"It is obviously the only reasonable explanation why Russia objects to the idea. It's not being aimed at them. The Anti- Missile Shield is for rockets coming from the Middle East."
Reports suggest that Washington is preparing a concrete proposal to start exploratory talks with Warsaw soon. Poland is the strongest ally of US foreign policy in Europe.
But Polish lawmakers argue that this doesn't mean that Warsaw should surrender its sovereignty to the US. Polish Defense officials have gone on record saying that Washington would have to give Warsaw security guarantees before stationing anything foreign on Polish soil.
International defense expert Bartlomiej Weglarczyk from Gazeta Wyborcza says that Poland would have the upper hand if it would say yes to the US scheme.
"This shield is a long range missile shield. It has nothing to do with Poland; it `s not to defend Poland so we should get something to defend ourselves. The Polish military has a huge shortage of short-range missile defense systems. Poland is the best location for the missile shield, so we can get a huge prize for our agreement to place the base in Poland."
But Roman Kuzniar from the Strategic Defense Studies at Warsaw University disagrees with popular opinion. He thinks it would place Poland in danger of a possible terrorist attack.
"Obviously I am against it. We don't need it. Nobody needs it. It is not a threat driven project. First it is going to endanger our security situation. It is going to put us at risk from the security point of view. Why because this American base can be come in the time of crisis an object of a hostile attack. There is no prize for
the exchange of your security. What can we get in exchange - visas?"
The US which already has an early warning system stationed in
California and Alaska wants to extend its defense reach to Europe by 2011.
Source: Radio Polskie 1/25/07
posted by Denny @ 8:38 AM
2 Comments:
This will be interesting to watch.
I wonder how much interest the Poles really have is Visas though; the short-range missiles however might be of greater interest.
The US and Bush are not viewed in Poland the same way as in the rest of the world.The Russians only have themselves to blame as their behaviour authored Poland’s position on the missiles. The Russians chose a path of intimidation, threats and economic warfare now they have a result. They would have been better off to admit their responsibility for their genocidal actions against the Polish people and apologize for it.
Accepting the missiles is a means of tying US security to Polish security and therefore taking out an insurance policy for the future. The notion of relying on the main players of the EU (Germany, France and the UK) for security is laughable.
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