Missile Defense Cooperation

LATEST NEWS

International Missile Defense Conference Held in Krakow

The Institute of Strategic Studies (ISS), in cooperation with the U.S. Consulate General in Krakow, organized a one-day conference on June 29 entitled, “Does Poland Need the Missile Shield?”  The conference on the proposed American plan to locate a defensive missile system in Poland and radar system in the Czech Republic opened with welcome remarks by European Parliament MP and President of ISS, Bogdan Klich.  U.S. Ambassador Victor Ashe described the main U.S. policy position on missile defense, outlining the threat and stressing that the proposed U.S. system is defensive and a part of the overall joint security of the United States and Europe.  (more)

Polish Senators Learn About Missile Defense At Vandenberg Air Force Base

Members of the Polish Senate’s Foreign Relations Committee, Senators Franciszek Adamczyk, Czeslaw Rybka and Ludwik Zalewski, visited Vandenberg Air Force Base in California as part of the State Department’s International Visitor Leadership Program. The Senators participated in a 10-day program June 24 – July 4 to learn about both missile defense (MDA) and how to develop a national guard in Poland. "We were able to get an impression of what MDA really is," said Senator Adamczyk, chair of the Polish Senate Defense Committee. "This was an opportunity to see it on the ground and we now see what we are talking about. It will mean more during our parliamentary discussion." The Senators also traveled to Chicago to visit the Illinois National Guard in order to understand how to develop reserve units within the branches of the Polish Armed Forces. To learn more about their visit, see 
http://www.vandenberg.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123059242

Formal Negotiations on Missile Defense Open in Warsaw

Formal negotiations between the United States and Poland on missile defense opened on May 24 in Warsaw.  The U.S. side was led by John Rood, Assistant Secretary of State for International Security.  “The proposal that the United States has made for missile defense cooperation with Poland is something that we see as serving a broader purpose to promote a closer defense and security relationship between our two countries,” said Assistant Secretary Rood at a May 24 press conference with Poland’s lead negotiator, Undersecretary of State of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Witold Waszczykowski.  The next round of negotiations will take place in late June in Washington, D.C. (AUDIO) (more)

U.S.-Poland Meet to Discuss Status of Forces Implementing Agreement

Representatives of Poland and the United States met in Warsaw on May 14 to discuss a Status of Forces Implementing Agreement, a key element that would lay the groundwork for basing a European component of a U.S. missile defense system on Polish soil.  The U.S. negotiating team was headed by Ambassador Robert Loftis, the State Department’s Senior Advisor for Security Negotiations and Agreements.  U.S. Ambassador to Poland, Victor Ashe, characterized the meeting as a “good beginning, with an exchange of ideas and philosophies on how the negotiations should move forward.”  The discussions focused on status of forces issues, which generally involve legal, taxation, customs and other issues regarding the property and personnel associated with the presence of U.S. forces abroad.  Formal negotiations on missile defense will open on May 24 in Warsaw, and will be led by John Rood, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for International Security.  (more)

Rice, Gates Outline U.S. Strategy on Missile Defense

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates outlined the U.S. strategy on missile defense in the April 28/29 edition of the Polish newspaper Rzeczpospolita.  “Our goal is to field systems capable of protecting not only the United States and our forces, but also friends and allies like those in the transatlantic community.  We all face an emerging common threat, and America has proposed a practical solution.  Europe, above all, must know – based on its own modern history – that the time to cooperate is now, not when the threat is imminent.”  To read the full text, click here.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Visits Poland

U.S. Secretary of Defense, Robert M. Gates, visited Poland April 24-25.  Secretary Gates met with Polish President Lech Kaczynski, Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski, Minister of Defense Aleksander Szczyglo, Minister of Foreign Affairs Anna Fotyga and a group of Polish parliamentarians to discuss U.S.-Polish cooperation in Iraq and Afghanistan and the U.S. proposal to place missile defense assets in Poland.  “Poland – through its courage, its commitment to common values, and, yes, its suffering at the hands of Nazis and Communists – taught us that, in the end, freedom is indivisible.  Poland taught us that the security of nations, and perhaps of all free nations, cannot be maintained in isolation,” said Secretary Gates. (more) 

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U.S. Missile Defense Agency Director and Under Secretary of Defense Visit Poland

Lieutenant General Henry A. Obering, Director of the U.S. Missile Defense Agency, and U.S. Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, Ambassador Eric S. Edelman, visited Poland April 17-18.  General Obering and Ambassador Edelman met with Polish government officials, parliamentarians, security experts, and members of the media to discuss the U.S. proposal to place missile defense assets in Poland. (more)

Successful Missile Defense Intercept Test Takes Place Off Hawaii

Lieutenant General Henry "Trey" Obering, Missile Defense Agency director, announced on April 6 the completion of a successful intercept test for the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) ballistic missile defense element at the Pacific Missile Range Facility off the island of Kauai in Hawaii. This was the first THAAD interceptor mission that was considered a Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS) test, meaning that more than one element of the BMDS participated in the test. (more)  (VIDEO)

U.S. Missile Defense Agency Deputy Director Visits Poland

U.S. Missile Defense Agency Deputy Director, Brigadier General Patrick O’Reilly, visited Poland March 28-29 to discuss U.S. missile defense plans in Europe.  In addition to his meetings with senior Polish government officials, Brig. Gen. O’Reilly also met with the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Polish Sejm and held a roundtable discussion with a group of leading Polish security experts on the technical details of the proposed European component of U.S. missile defense.  To see a copy of Brig. Gen. O’Reilly’s power-point presentation, click here. (Note: 25 MB, may take a few minutes to download.)  (more)

Op-Ed on Missile Defense by Ambassador Ashe in Newsweek Polska

The March 25 edition of Newsweek Polska carried an op-ed on U.S. missile defense plans by U.S. Ambassador to Poland, Victor Ashe.  “Missile defense is a serious issue directly bearing upon the national security of both our nations, an issue transcending partisan politics and superficial judgments.  All of us – governments, academics, journalists and politicians – owe it to the public to have a rational and fact-based discussion on the merits of the initiative,” wrote Ambassador Ashe.  To read the full text of the Ambassador’s op-ed, click here.  (more)

U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission: "Anti-Missile Shield Is Protection For All of Europe"

Kenneth Hillas, Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Warsaw, was in Krakow on March 26 to do a roundtable interview with national and regional journalists on the topic of missile defense.  Mr. Hillas stressed that for the United States, defensive protection of Europe is a key priority.  He added that the United States could build missile defense systems in the U.S. that would protect United States territory, but this would leave Europe vulnerable, and Europe’s security is critical to the United States. (more)

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Fried Discusses Missile Defense in Warsaw

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, Daniel Fried, visited Warsaw March 20-21.  Secretary Fried met with Polish Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski, Foreign Minister Anna Fotyga, and Minister of Defense Aleksander Szczyglo to discuss missile defense cooperation and other bilateral issues.  He also met with opposition leaders to encourage their support.  On March 21, Secretary Fried held a roundtable discussion at the U.S. Embassy with Polish and international journalists to discuss U.S. missile defense plans.  “I have come here to listen to Poles, both in the government and the opposition, to hear their concerns.  So that when negotiations start, they start off in the right way,” said Secretary Fried.  Daniel Fried served as U.S. Ambassador to Poland from 1997 until 2001.  For a full transcript of the roundtable discussion, click here.  (AUDIO)  (VIDEO)