The US and Poland are to sign a deal to locate part of the US's controversial missile defence system on Polish soil.

- 20 / 08 / 2008 09:25

The US and Poland are to sign a deal to locate part of the US's controversial missile defence system on Polish soil.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has arrived in Warsaw for the ceremony, which follows 18 months of negotiation.

The deal has angered Russia, which has warned the base could become a target for a nuclear strike.

Washington says the system will protect both it and much of Europe against missile attacks from what it calls "rogue elements" in the Middle East.

A radar in the Czech Republic will be built to track the missiles.

Rice and Poland's Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski will sign the agreement, which will see both US missiles and servicemen stationed on Polish soil.

While Washington believes 10 interceptor missiles on a disused military base near Poland's Baltic Sea coast will protect much of Nato against possible long-range attacks, Warsaw sees threats much closer to home.

That is why it has demanded - in exchange for hosting the base - short-range Patriot missiles for its own air defences and a guarantee that the US will come to its assistance in the event of an attack.

Both the US and Poland say the system is not aimed against Russia.

But neither the timing of the agreement - during the ongoing crisis in Georgia - nor the Polish demands has done anything to placate Moscow.