Now This Was a Surprise: Obama Installing US Missile Shield in Turkey

Turkey agrees to host U.S. radar site, a key piece of Europe missile shield

By Craig Whitlock, Published: September 15 Washington Post

The Obama administration signed accords this week with three NATO allies to host cornerstones of a missile shield over Europe, including a highly sought-after deal with Turkey that will allow the installation of a U.S. radar station close to Iran.

After nearly two years of talks with Washington, Turkey’s Foreign Ministry announced Wednesday that it would allow the U.S. military to operate a high-powered X-band radar station in Malatya province, about 400 miles west of the Iranian border. Along with similar radars deployed on U.S. Navy ships in the Mediterranean Sea, the station is intended to provide early warning of missile launches from Iran.

Turkey signed the agreement despite heavy political pressure from Iran and another neighbor, Russia, which have criticized the missile shield as a stalking horse to neutralize their own defenses. Iran’s Foreign Ministry assailed Turkey’s decision, saying it would “create tension” and cause “complicated consequences.”

Turkey has sought to maintain friendly relations with Russia and Iran under its self-described “no problems with neighbors” policy. In this instance, however, the government in Ankara sided with the United States and its other NATO allies. Turkey has been a member of the military alliance since 1952.

Obama administration officials portrayed the radar accord as a coup not only for their missile defense plans but also their efforts to bolster ties with Turkey, which had soured because of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.

“This is probably the biggest strategic decision between the U.S. and Turkey over the past 10 to 15 years,” a senior Obama administration official said Thursday, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss details of the negotiations.

With a booming economy, Turkey has become an increasingly influential force in diplomatic and business circles in the greater Middle East. In recent years, however, Turkey has burnished ties with Iran and Syria while cooling toward Europe, prompting concern in Washington.

Turkey’s deteriorating relations with Israel posed another hurdle in the talks with Washington.

Turkish officials had insisted that the U.S. military not share data from the radar with Israel, which sees itself at much higher risk of an Iranian missile attack. Turkey’s stance raised hackles on Capitol Hill, however, where several senators urged the White House to reject such restrictions.

Another senior administration official, also speaking on condition of anonymity, said the signed agreement with Turkey does not bar the United States from indirectly providing radar data to Israel.

“It’s understood that data from any U.S. radars and sensors around the world may be fused with other data to maximize the effectiveness of our missile defenses worldwide,” that official said. “Nothing in any of the agreements restricts our ability to defend the state of Israel.”

Although the early-warning radar in Turkey will primarily support NATO’s missile defenses in Europe, the station will be owned and operated by the U.S. government. The U.S. military operates a similar radar station in Israel and is looking to place another near the Persian Gulf.

Administration officials said there was “no quid pro quo” as part of the Turkey radar agreement. The United States and Turkey are holding separate talks over basing U.S. drones in Turkey to guide attacks against Kurdish militants — a high priority for Ankara.

Development of a European missile shield accelerated under the George W. Bush administration. In September 2009, Obama announced plans to construct a more extensive system in Europe that will be built in phases through 2020.

Under that system, a total of 48 missile interceptors will be based in Romania and Poland, starting in 2015 and 2018, respectively. The State Department finalized agreements with those countries this week.

At the same time, the Obama administration and NATO have been talking with Russia about the possibility of cooperating on missile defense. Moscow has been historically hostile to the idea of a missile shield in Europe and the discussions have slowed recently.

“Our bilateral dialogue with Washington, and with Brussels within the NATO framework, has been increasingly stalled,” said Alexander Lukashevich, a Foreign Ministry press spokesman, according to the Interfax news agency.


Special correspondent Will Englund in Moscow contributed to this report.

Triumph in Moscow

Sense of Triumph in Moscow
Euphoria over Obama's Decision To Shelve Missile Shield

By Moritz Gathmann in Moscow Spiegel

Moscow is triumphant over Obama's decision to cancel his missile shield plan. But it is no foregone conclusion that Russia will harden its line against Iran. And Poland and the Czech Republic will also expect overtures from the United States.

The decision by Washington not to install a missile defense shield in Poland and the Czech Republic has prompted Russians to breathe a little easier on Thursday. It is also fueling a sense of triumph.

The main reason for President Barack Obama's decision was "Russia's uncompromising position on the issue," said the clearly pleased Russian foreign policy expert Mikhail Margelov, chairman of the foreign policy committee of the Federation Council of Russia, the country's upper legislative chamber. And Konstantin Kosachev, head of the Duma's foreign relations committee, said he sees evidence that today's American government has a better understanding of the Russians' concerns.

With his decision, Obama has removed a significant barrier to relations between Washington and Moscow, where the missile defense shield had always been seen as a slap in the face. "George W. Bush wanted to show that he didn't care a bit about Russia's opinion," Fyodor Lukyanov, editor-in-chief of Moscow's Russia in Global Affairs magazine, told SPIEGEL ONLINE. He sees Obama's step as being important primarily in psychological terms. The promised "restart" in Russia-American relations is bearing fruit, he said.

One year ago in August, just after the start of the war between Russia and Georgia over the renegade republic South Ossetia, Warsaw and Prague quickly moved to sign agreements with Washington regarding the installation of the American missile defense shield in their countries. But Barack Obama, who would be elected president a short time later, showed very little enthusiasm for the project -- even during the days of his presidential campaign. After he entered office, Eastern European countries like the Czech Republic, Poland, Ukraine and even Georgia became less strategically important to him. After all, the US was mainly concerned with finding a way out of the financial and economic crisis.

The question now is what Russia will offer the United States in exchange for freezing the missile program in Poland and the Czech Republic?

Was Shelving Part of a Deal with Moscow?

In March, months before Obama's official state visit to Moscow, the first news leaked of what that horse-trading might include. The Moscow daily Kommersant reported on a secret letter in which Obama apparently demanded a harder course from the Russian president against Iran. In exchange, Washington would freeze its missile shield plans. But officials disputed that any kind of "deal" was being made. Obama did, however, confirm that missile defense appeared to be less important in reducing the threat from Iran. Still, Russia's policies toward Iran have hardly changed: Moscow continues to be in favor of negotiations but opposes tougher sanctions.

It's also unlikely Russia will suddenly adopt a firmer stance towards Iran. "The US will be disappointed," Lukyanov said. "The American idea that Russia holds the key to a solution to the Iranian nuclear problem is a fantasy." At best, he said, Russia could intensify its diplomatic efforts.


Nevertheless, the Russians have made concessions to the US on the issue of Afghanistan. In 2008, Moscow began permitting the transport of American supplies over Russian territory. And on Sept. 6, Russia also started allowing American aircraft to transport military supplies for Afghanistan through Russian airspace. Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev reached a deal on that issue during the US president's official visit.

4,500 US Overflight Rights over Russian Territory Per Year

The deal, which permits up to 4,500 US Army flights per year, was extremely important to the Americans. The Russian transit routes provide an important alternative to the main routes through Pakistan, where American convoys are often attacked by Taliban insurgents. Russian politicians have also expressed again and again that it is in their vital interest that the Taliban not be allowed to get the upper hand in Afghanistan.

And the freezing of the missile shield in Poland and the Czech Republic will also doubtlessly improve Russian-American relations. But there are still plenty of problems on the agenda. The START treaty on the reduction of strategic nuclear warheads, for example, expires in December. Lukyanov says he believes that, following Obama's decision on Thursday, few barriers will stand in the way of the successful signing of a successor treaty this year.

The main current source of tension for the relationship between the US and Russia actually lies further away, in Georgia and Ukraine. Both of those nations were supported in their anti-Russian ways by the former American administration headed by George W. Bush, who held out the prospect of NATO membership.

Ukraine and Georgia as a Bone of Contention

Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko, whose attitude to Obama's predecessor was sycophantic, may be on his last legs politically. But in the last few months Yushchenko has steered a confrontational course in regard to Russia. On Jan. 17, 2010, there will be a presidential election in Ukraine. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has already made it clear that he no longer wants to see Yushchenko in the position. Lukyanov is convinced that "it could get very unpleasant for Russia during the election campaign." Some of the candidates will use a pro-West, hard core anti-Russian stance to further their political aims.

Things are not altogether peaceful in the former Soviet republic of Georgia either. A new attempt by the Georgian president, Mikheil Saakashvili, to take back the renegade states of South Ossetia and Abkhazia cannot be ruled out completely. According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, the US is still delivering weapons to Georgia -- something the Russians naturally do not like. In July, the Russian Ambassador to NATO Dmitry Rogozin threatened any country that was delivering weapons to Georgia with sanctions.

In Poland and the Czech Republic, they are nervously anticipating what Obama may offer as a replacement. "There will be an American presence but it will take a different form," Lukyanov said. What form that presence takes will determine future relations with Moscow.

"Russia doesn't have any problems with non-strategic rockets," Lukyanov says. "But if the US opens a military base, then we will have the same situation that we had with the missile defense system."

Obama would trust US security to Turkey. Turkey?

You really have to be pooping me on this one.

Remember how well the US 4th Mechanized Infantry Division performed in the attack on Iraq? Oh that's right, they weren't allowed transit rights over Turkey. Our stalwart lion (Where have I heard that term before?) our so-called ally, Turkey, stabbed us in the ass. (Turks are major ass stabbers in case you didn't know.)

Well our shallow-rooted so called American president is thinking that missile defense should be moved to Turkey from Poland. That is his latest thinking about US missile defense.

You see, the thing is, if a missile defense system is in Poland and we really need to use it, the Poles will allow it. The Turks on the other hand, ass-stabbing knife in hand, may have other ideas if the system is needed against either the Russians or an Islamic neighbor.

The brilliance of our affirmative action, community organizing POTUS becomes clearer with each passing day.

Poland, watch your ass. Obama has your back.

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U.S. Mulls Alternatives for Missile Shield

By JUDY DEMPSEY and PETER BAKER NY Times
Published: August 28, 2009

BERLIN — The Obama administration has developed possible alternative plans for a missile defense shield that could drop hotly disputed sites in Poland and the Czech Republic, a move that would please Russia and Germany but sour relations with American allies in Eastern Europe.

Administration officials said they hoped to complete their months-long review of the planned antimissile system as early as next month, possibly in time for President Obama to present ideas to President Dmitri A. Medvedev of Russia at a meeting in New York during the annual opening at the General Assembly of the United Nations.

But they cautioned that no decisions had been made and that all options were still under discussion, including retaining the Polish and Czech sites first selected by President George W. Bush. The Obama review team plans to present a menu of options rather than a single recommendation to a committee of senior national security officials in the coming weeks. Only after that would the matter go to cabinet-rank officials and the president.

Among the alternatives are dropping either the Polish or Czech site, or both sites, and instead building launching pads or radar installations in Turkey or the Balkans, while developing land-based versions of the Aegis SM-3, a ship-based anti-missile system, officials said. The changes, they said, would be intended not to mollify Russia, but to adjust to what they see as an accelerating threat from shorter-range Iranian missiles.

People following the review, including anxious officials in Eastern Europe, said they thought that the administration was preparing to abandon the Polish and Czech sites. “It is clear that Eastern Europe is out of the epicenter of this American administration,” said Piotr Paszkowski, a spokesman for Poland’s foreign minister. “The missile defense system is now under review. The chances that it will be in Poland are 50-50.”

Dmitry O. Rogozin, Russia’s ambassador to NATO, said Moscow anticipated news from Mr. Obama in September. “I hope that Medvedev will take some good result from this bilateral discussion in New York, and maybe in October we will live in a new world in Russian-American relations,” he said.

Administration spokesmen said it was premature to discuss what the review would conclude or when it would be finished. “Our review of our missile defense strategy is ongoing and has not reached completion yet,” said Philip J. Crowley, a State Department spokesman.

The proposed system inherited by Mr. Obama envisioned stationing 10 interceptor missiles in Poland and a sophisticated radar facility in the Czech Republic to defend against potential ballistic missile threats from Iran or other hostile nations. But Russia has long objected to what it sees as a threat in its own backyard and has insisted that the Obama administration abandon the plan as a sign that it is serious about improving relations.

Shifting an anti-missile system out of territory once dominated by Moscow might mollify Russian concerns without jettisoning the missile shield altogether. At the same time, it could set off criticism both at home and in Eastern Europe that Mr. Obama was caving in to Russian pressure.

Polish fears that the United States was having second thoughts were heightened after diplomats learned of a meeting last week in Huntsville, Ala., that included generals who oversee missile defense, including Gen. James E. Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Gen. Kevin P. Chilton, head of the United States Strategic Command.

“What was revealing about such a high-level gathering was that the speakers did not discuss how and when the missile shield would be deployed in Poland and the Czech Republic,” said Riki Ellison, chairman of the Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance, a Washington-based lobbying group, who attended the meeting.

But administration officials rejected the assertion that a reformulated missile defense system would forsake Eastern European security. “We definitely are not abandoning our commitment to defend our European allies from a missile threat from Iran,” said one official, speaking on condition of anonymity because the review was not complete. “We are exploring options that will enhance the defense of our European allies.”

The cost of building the complexes in Poland and the Czech Republic could increase to more than $1 billion from $837 million, according to the Government Accountability Office, which published a report this month on preparations to deploy the system.

The cost estimates do not include support at the sites or the development, testing and procurement costs. The overall cost of establishing a modest ballistic missile system in Europe would exceed $4 billion through 2015, according to the G.A.O. report. Even at that, it said, “Congress does not have accurate information on the full investment required for ballistic missile defenses in Europe.”

The Bush administration strongly advocated a missile shield. Mr. Obama has been more skeptical, saying he will proceed only if it is financially and technically feasible. He has also told the Russians that the system would not be needed if they used their leverage to persuade Iran to drop its suspected nuclear weapons programs.

The discussions in Huntsville caused a stir among diplomats in Poland. Eastern European leaders worry that the Obama administration is playing down their security needs even though, they contend, Russia’s war with Georgia last year and increasing tension between Russia and Ukraine show the need for a strong American presence in the region.

“You can see that compared to the former Bush administration, the Obama administration is more interested in Russia, China and of course Afghanistan than Eastern Europe,” said Slawomir Debski, director of the Institute of International Affairs in Warsaw.

In Huntsville, General Cartwright made clear that the administration was focusing on the relevance, adaptability and affordability of any new programs, including missile defense, according to people who were at the meeting.

He also said that the United States had to take into account Russian sensitivities toward the missile shield for Eastern Europe.

Judy Dempsey reported from Berlin, and Peter Baker from Washington. Ellen Barry contributed reporting from Moscow.

US Shoot Down of Satellite Is a Warning to Iran

And you can add others to the warning. The technological achievement is staggering and the diplomacy and security advantage should be obvious. The US has demonstrated that a first strike attempt by an enemy could come to naught, and the follow-up US retaliation would be nation ending. The system needs to be continually advanced and a new generation of unmanned fighter and bomber warplanes would insure US dominance for another generation. The consequences in not committing the resources are extremely dangerous. Some of you may want to think about that when contemplating a vote for Obama.

_____________________

February 22, 2008
Satellite shoot-down is a clear warning to Iran
James Lewis American Thinker

Wednesday night's SM-3 shoot-down of a US spy satellite tumbling out of its orbit was a magnificent success for anti-missile defense. It meant hitting a bullet with a bullet, with only a ten-second time window for the shot. The hit was kinetic, meaning that there was no conventional warhead to explode, and the SM-3 hit the fuel tank of the bus-sized spy satellite right in the sweet spot in order to disperse the toxic propellant. The small pieces left over will now burn up in the atmosphere.

The SM-3 was traveling at 17,000 miles per hour when it hit the spy sat. The target was "cold," so that heat-seeking sensors designed to locate hot missiles were not even used. This was a last-minute modification of an anti-missile system for a special job, an extraordinary technical achievement, and one that is now sending ripple effects all around the world. The Chinese People's Army and the Russkis are all upset, poor babies. But this fast, off-the-shelf demonstration of US technical prowess was really a direct shot across the bows of Iran -- and also North Korea.

Why? Because the Russians and Chinese have had ICBMs for decades and never used them. They respond to the balance of terror in a rational way. But Iran and North Korea are constantly threatening us, unpredictable, and often crazy-sounding.

Just this week we heard official statements like this:

"The cancerous growth Israel will soon disappear... I am convinced that with every passing day Hizbullah's might is increasing and in the near future, we will witness the disappearance of this cancerous growth Israel by means of the Hizbullah fighters' radiation [therapy]."

Well, "Hizbullah" means "party of Allah," and that refers to the whole Khomeini cult, not just its Lebanese lapdog. So "radiation therapy" from the Party of Allah has a pretty clear meaning. Tehran's head guru, Ayatollah Khamenei, also explained that Allah hates any Iranians who don't support the nuke program. Exactly where he found that in the Koran wasn't explained.

Meanwhile, North Korea is in the middle of a succession struggle, always the trickiest time in family despotisms. The Syrians, too, have been getting NoKo help on nuclear power, according to Israeli sources.

The Iranian opposition group that keeps leaking the mullah's nuke secrets has just presented evidence that they really do have a working factory to make nuclear warheads, at a town called Khojir, built in cooperation with the North Koreans. Since fabricating ing a nuclear warhead is not difficult once you have the uranium or plutonium, this sounds believable. That news knocks the last leg out from under the rickety fantasy world of the last US National Intelligence Estimate.

So this is a crucial time to demonstrate to the rogues that the West can defend itself. That is why the administration chose this time to show off our anti-missile defense capability.

The brilliance of our anti-missile systems is that they can move and fast and stealthily from place to place. Aegis cruisers like the one that just shot down the spy satellite can be sent to any navigable sea in the world, very close to North Korea, Iran, and Syria. If Chavez ever buys missiles from his friends in Tehran, or if Castro's successor does, the US Navy can be in range the next day. Once we get laser weapons mounted on aircraft, we will have even faster and more flexible defenses. That technology is not far away.

So this is an historic moment for the good guys. For the first time since Stalin exploded an atom bomb in 1949 there is a working defense against nuke-bearing missiles and planes. Real civilizations -- large cities surrounded by farms to feed them -- have always depended upon walls, moats, and natural defenses. That is the only reason why we have the prosperity and culture that began with Sumer 6,000 years ago. But defense and aggression are always in a race -- the liberal fantasy that arms races are somehow abnormal in history is just ignorant.

What's different about the last half century is that city-killing weapons have put the aggressor at a major advantage, so that a High Noon standoff was the only answer. That horrific period is now passing as missile defenses come into their own. We are coming back to a more normal balance. That is a very good thing.

So when you vote in the Fall, don't forget who made missile defenses possible.

(Hint: It wasn't the Democrats).

James Lewis blogs at dangeroustimes.wordpress.com/

Does the US Need Russian Permission?

This article from Deutsche Welle is hard to believe. You have to read it. When you do, ask yourself if Russia consulted with the US on sending missiles to Iran or weapons to Venuezela.

What is wrong with the Germans?

International Relations | 18.02.2007
Germany Irked by US Approach to Missile Shield


Steinmeier said the US should consult with all nations affected by its plans

American plans to station part of an anti-missile system in Poland and the Czech Republic without consulting Russia met with criticism from German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, according to a media report.

The proximity of the US missile batteries to the Russian border should have convinced officials in Washington of the need to brief their counterparts in Moscow about plans to build portions of an anti-missile shield in the two eastern European countries.

"One should have spoken with Russia earlier as the sites where they (the missiles) are to be stationed are edging closer to Russia," Steinmeier told the German business daily Handelsblatt in an interview to be published Monday. "Given the strategic nature of such projects, I call for a prudent approach and intensive dialogue with all partners who are directly or indirectly affected."

Russian President Vladimir Putin last week accused the United States of making the world a more place with its plans for an anti-missile system.

"One-sided illegitimate action hasn't solved a single problem and has become a generator of many human tragedies, a source of tension," Putin said.

Iran not a threat to Europe

Steinmeier said Iran's missiles could not reach Europe

US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates insisted that the missile system, which calls for placing 10 interceptor missiles in Poland and the Czech Republic, was not directed against Russia but to protect Europe from missiles launched in the Middle East.

Steinmeier, however, dismissed any potential threat posed by Iranian rockets, saying Tehran did not possess the technology to make such an attack. He also spoke out against any immediate new sanctions against Iran over its nuclear policies.

"The most recent resolution of the UN Security Council does not contain any automatic mechanism for the situation where Iran does not fulfill its obligations," he said.

US waiting for Poland's official answer

The US has stationed some missiles in Japan already

The leader of the oppositions Greens party, Fritz Kuhn, said the German government needed to make it clear to US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice during her visit to Berlin this week that it would not support placing missiles in the two EU and NATO member countries.

"What the USA is doing can only be understood by Russia as a provocation," he told Monday's Saarbrücker Zeitung.

Exactly how much criticism Germany needs to give the US remains unclear as Poland has yet to decide if it will allow the Americans to station missiles within the country.

"We are preparing an answer that I think we will give to the American administration by diplomatic means within two weeks," new Polish Defense Minister Aleksander Szczyglo told Poland's PAP news agency on Sunday.

DW staff (sms)