Last Friday, the lower house of the Russian parliament, the State Duma, voted to scrap the agreement. Federation Council Speaker Sergei Mironov said the decision was not politically motivated.
"There is no politics in our decision - only common sense, expediency and national security considerations," he said.
Russian Deputy Defense Minister Nikolai Pankov said Russia would not lose its position in the region following the termination of the agreement with Ukraine.
Russia and Ukraine signed an agreement on leasing the Mukachevo and Sevastopol early warning stations to Russia in February 1997. The document stipulated that Russia would cover all operating costs, totaling $4 million per year, while Ukraine would be responsible for the maintenance of the facilities.
Pankov said previously Ukraine had practically stopped fulfilling its obligations under the agreement with a view to its subsequent integration into NATO.
Several years ago, Russia launched a program for the development of Russian Space Forces, which included building and using early warning radars on its own territory.
Russia currently leases ground-based radar stations in Sevastopol and Mukachevo in Ukraine; in Baranovichi, Belarus; Balkhash in Kazakhstan; and Gabala in Azerbaijan. It also has radars on its own territory in Murmansk (arctic northwest), Pechora (northwest Urals), and Irkutsk (east Siberia).
Russia's Space Forces Commander Col. Gen. Vladimir Popovkin said a new Voronezh-type radar in Lekhtusi, Leningrad Region, would go into operation later this year.
Another Voronezh-type radar is being built in Armavir in southwest Russia and is expected to be put into service in 2009.
With an effective range of 4,000 kilometers (2,500 miles) the Voronezh-type radar has capabilities similar to its predecessors, the Dnepr and Daryal, which are currently deployed outside Russia, but uses less power and is more environmentally friendly.
Pankov said the addition of new radars would provide comprehensive and credible early warning coverage for Russia's entire territory.
Under the agreement, Russia will end its obligations 12 months after officially notifying Ukraine.
