October 11, 2006 :: BBC Worldwide Monitoring :: News
Poland has been superceded by Romania and the United Kingdom in the “game” for a new U.S. missile defense site, writes Eugeniusz Janula in the Polish daily
Trybuna. “When one glances at a world atlas,” writes Janula, “there is not the slightest doubt that the most convenient location for an installation of this type is in the region of northern Norway or the U.K.’s Orkney or Shetland Islands.” From these locations, the U.S. could effectively intercept missiles coming in from the Middle East and South Asia, such as from Iran, as well as from the Kola Peninsula where Russia has deployed a considerable portion of its missile arsenal. Yet Norway declined and the U.K. likewise did not show much enthusiasm. So the U.S. began confidential talks with Poland and the Czech Republic. According to Janula, “the Czechs quickly realized that they were not the objective,” since a missile defense base built on their territory would not have “universal application.” In the case of Poland, “the Americans might discuss many things, but they would never consent to any control over such an important base,” and thus “Poland has dropped out of the game.” Janula claims that the U.S. now plans to set up a “small, temporary base with 8-10 semi-stationary launchers” in Romania, which will serve as a purely anti-Iranian installation. More importantly, he writes, the U.K. has revised its stance and will now make the Orkney Islands accessible for a “second base of universal application.” For this, the British will obtain “state-of-the-art nuclear submarine technologies, the naval version of the F-35 plane which will supplant the Harriers on British aircraft carriers, as well as other technological benefits.”
(Article)
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