A top U.S. Republican on Friday urged the Bush administration to step up its buildup of missile defense in Europe as a safeguard against possible future attacks from Iran.

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist made the appeal in a letter sent to U.S. President George W. Bush.

He said the threat from Iran "is only going to grow in the years ahead" and the United States "needs to take steps now to prepare to deal with that."

Therefore, Frist said, it's time for the Bush administration to intensify negotiations with its European allies to place U.S. missile interceptors on their territory.

At present, the United States has two ground sites hosting missile interceptors, in California and Alaska, respectively.

Since last year, the Bush administration has been negotiating with several European allies to find a third site for its ground- based interceptor missiles.

In his letter, Frist made his point by stressing on the "threat from Iran".

"As Iran continues to make progress in deploying its Shahab 3 missiles and developing new, longer range missiles, while simultaneously pursuing nuclear weapons, the ability to shoot down Iranian warheads in flight becomes increasingly critical to our national security," he claimed.

U.S. media said the letter not only reflects the mindset of conservative U.S. politicians on Iran and national security, but also reveals Frist, who aspires to run for president in 2008, tries to show the public that he is strong on national defense.

Source: Xinhua