The Czech Republic and the United States are likely to sign a bilateral treaty that creates a legal framework for the stay of the U.S. soldiers on Czech soil at the planned U.S. radar base in early spring, the Czech Defense Ministry said after three-day bilateral talks on Friday.
The fifth round of the talks on the SOFA (Strategic Framework and the Status of Forces Agreement) focused on taxes, transport issues and criminal liability of the U.S. soldiers at the base, the Czech news agency CTK reported.
The Czech delegation was led by Ivan Dvorak, head of the Defense Ministry's section for defense policy and strategy, while the U.S. team was headed by special envoy Jackson McDonald from the U.S. Department of State.
Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek did not rule out earlier that the SOFA might be completed only after the NATO summit at the latest by the summer.
According to previous information, Washington demands that the treaty on the stay of the U.S. troops apply not only to the radar base in Brdy, but also to the possible presence of U.S. soldiers in the Czech Republic in the future.
Besides the SOFA, the two countries also negotiate on the main agreement that defines the purpose of the establishment of the base.
The talks on the main treaty are to be closed soon. Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek said after meeting with U.S. President George W. Bush in Washington last week that the bilateral treaty would be completed "at home" in a couple of days.
Defense Minister Vlasta Parkanova said the next round of talks is planned for the last week in March.
The United States planned to build a radar base at the Brdy military district, some 90 km southwest of the capital city of Prague, along with an interceptor missile base in Poland.
Russia and some 70 percent of Czech citizens reject the project.
Source: Xinhua
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