Solving the missile defense problem

It was clear that the Obama administration would do something about missile defense. The Bush administration initiative to build installations in Poland and the Czech Republic to intercept missiles fired from the east (Iran? North Korea?) wasn't making anyone happy.

The installations faced widespread opposition in Poland and the Czech Republic, according to Prague correspondent Bruce I. Konviser, as well as a lack of political will in those countries to approve the plan.

Russia, as EU correspondent Teri Schultz wrote several months ago, was able to exploit its supposed anger over the expansion of defensive capabilities so close to its border to its advantage.

And the Obama administration did not hesitate to lay the groundwork for abandoning the plan, saying they would review it in light of the strong opposition with an eye toward evaluating whether it would even work — as Konviser pointed out, the interceptors hit their targets in little more than half the tests.

Now, as the Wall Street Journal reports, the U.S. will radically change its plans. Instead of building the planned fixed interceptors for intercontinental ballistic missiles, it will cooperate with European defense agencies to develop their capacity to intercept short- and medium-range missiles. In theory, the move should allow the administration to maintain its commitment to aid in the defense of allies so much closer to hostile nations, while taking away one of Russia's most valuable bargaining chips.

Or has Obama been rolled for the second time in weeks? First Netanyahu, now Medvedev?

The move should not hurt his sky-high popularity in Europe. It backs up EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana's assertion to GlobalPost a few months ago that "the button has been reset."

http://www.globalpost.com/notebook/europe/090917/solving-the-missile-defense-problem