Rice meets with Czech FM over military cooperation plan

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met with Czech Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg Friday over the plans to deploy a radar station in the Czech Republic to protect against so-called missile threats from the Middle East.

Speaking to reporters before the meeting, Rice said anti- missile projects were a key element of efforts to counter the modern threats of terrorism and the spread of weapons of mass destruction.

"I look forward to discussions with my colleague about ways that we might protect ourselves against those threats, including through missile defense," she said.

Schwarzenberg expressed support for the American plan of a missile defense shield, saying "We have to confront the dangers we have today."

Washington in January proposed installing parts of its anti- missile shield in central Europe, including some interceptor missiles in Poland and a radar system in the Czech Republic.

The Czech government officially agreed last month to start negotiations with the United States over the location of the radar base. The negotiations are expected to start in mid-May and go on until the year's end.

Washington said the missile defense system is not targeted at Russia, but the sensitive plans nevertheless have drawn sharp criticism from Moscow.

Source: Xinhua