Russia will not Accept U.S. Threat to its Nuclear Deterrent – Lavrov

From RIA Novosti:  Russia can not allow U.S. plans to deploy elements of its missile shield in Europe to threaten the effectiveness of its nuclear deterrent, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday.

U.S. officials admit that the missile defense system in Europe might be able to hit Russian inter-continental ballistic missiles by 2020.

"The U.S. administration says its global missile shield program is not directed against Russia. However, our conclusions on the true potential of the future missile defense system should be based on specific military and technical factors, not on words," Lavrov said.

"We will not accept a state of affairs when a missile defense system poses a threat to Russia’s nuclear deterrence potential," he went on.  (photo: Ilya Pitalev/RIA Novosti)

United States and Canada

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