US missile systems in Europe may generate Arms Race

RUSSIA: The US "anti-missile defense" systems (AMD) in Europe may cause an arms race between Washington and Moscow, as there continues to be no common ground on this issue, emphasized television here today.

Commenting on recent statements by Prime Minister Dmitri Medvedev to CNN, the 24 Hour Channel recalled that the AMD is the main obstacle in relations between the Russian Federation and the United States.

Russia remains open to dialogue, according to sources, but the U.S. is refusing to offer the legal guarantees required by the Kremlin as evidence that the AMD is not targeting Russian territory. In the interview, Medvedev expressed concern that future generations of politicians will take decisions by 2020 that will open a new page in the arms race.

He insisted that the threat is real and stressed that it is still possible to reach an agreement.

Medvedev decried the so-called Magnitsky Act, passed by Congress and signed by President Obama, which prohibits entry by Russian officials to the United States for alleged human rights violations.

The Prime Minister felt that Congress erred when, as it canceled the Jackson-Vanik amendment, which restricted bilateral trade since the days of the Soviet Union, it introduced the law that bears the name of Magnitsky.

PRENSA LATINA