In January, the U.S. announced plans to deploy elements of its missile defense system in the Czech Republic and Poland to counter possible attacks from Iran or North Korea, whose nuclear programs have provoked serious international concerns.
"We believe this system - strategic missile defense - is, to put it mildly, of a somewhat fanciful nature," Sergei Ivanov told journalists, adding that he did not rule out that U.S. missile defense plans for Central Europe would be on the agenda during next week's visit to Russia by U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates.
"This issue really concerns us. It is unclear this system is necessary in Eastern Europe - Poland and Czech Republic," the first deputy premier said, adding that the U.S. will attempt to explain the reasoning behind it.
Russia, which has been anxious about NATO bases that have appeared in former Communist-bloc countries and ex-Soviet republics, has blasted the plans to deploy anti-missile systems in Central Europe as a national security threat and a destabilizing factor for Europe.
The commander of Russia's Air Force said Thursday that the U.S. missile defense elements planned for deployment in Central Europe do not pose danger for Russia.
"These systems are not especially dangerous for us... Their cost has more political than military weight," Army General Vladimir Mikhailov told journalists at the Gagarin Air Force Academy in the Moscow Region.
He said the U.S. systems were stationary, and could be precisely located by coordinates.
Russia's permanent representative to NATO said Thursday U.S. plans to deploy missile defense elements in Central Europe will change the strategic balance of forces in Europe.
"Of course, Russia believes this is a change in the strategic balance of forces in our common region," Konstantin Totsky told journalists in Brussels, where a session of the Russia-NATO Council discussing the U.S. deployment plans was underway.
He said he hoped American experts would prove to Russia the necessity to deploy missile defense elements in Europe. Asked whether Russia would agree to participate in the U.S. project, Totsky said this was a subject for discussion.
Totsky said Russia was ready for dialogue but stressed that the country could not agree to a unilateral decision "in such a strategically important sphere as deployment of American elements of strategic potential in Europe."
"These are actually steps to break, destroy the years-proven international principles and norms of arms control," he said.
Totsky also said the U.S. and Europe were not in the short term under threat of a missile attack from the Middle East.
"Everyone agrees that in a year or two, or in the short term, there will be no missiles in the Middle East capable of striking European territory and more so the United States," he said.
Totsky said there was enough time for experts to discuss the issue. "If it is a common threat, let's have a joint defense and look for different answers," he said.
Lt. Gen. Henry Obering, head of the U.S. Missile Defense Agency, said Tuesday that in order to ease the Kremlin's concerns, Washington was ready to allow Russian experts to inspect the likely missile site in Poland to show that it posed no threat to Moscow.
The U.S. administration disclosed Wednesday the technical parameters of a missile defense system to be deployed in Poland and the Czech Republic.
It said a total of 10 interceptor missiles in underground silos would be located at the facility in Poland. The interceptor base will require facilities for electronic equipment for secure communications, missile assembly, storage, maintenance, and security.
The State Department said the ballistic missile defense interceptors that would be installed are for purely defensive purposes and have no offensive capability.
"They carry no explosive warheads of any type, relying instead on their kinetic energy alone to intercept with and destroy incoming warheads. Silos constructed for deployment of defensive interceptors are substantially smaller than those used for offensive missiles. Any conversion would require extensive modifications, thus precluding the possibility of converting the interceptor silos for use by offensive missile," it said.
