Prague - Czech leaders Friday expressed further reservations
about Russia's offer to the US to use Azerbaijan radar in a missile
defence system instead of the facilities planned for the Czech
Republic and Poland.
Prague officials also said that the offer made by Russian
President Vladimir Putin to US President George W Bush on Thursday
had not halted bilateral talks between the US and the Czech Republic.
Czech Deputy Prime Minister Alexandr Vondra, a supporter of
placing a radar base for the US missile shield in the Czech Republic,
a possible Azeri radar could not make up for the facility planned for
the Czech Republic.
'Azerbaijan cannot replace the Central European component for
protecting Europe, but it can, if agreed, complement it,' Vondra told
Mlada fronta Dnes daily.
Czech officials mostly welcomed that Russia has departed from its
dismissive rhethoric, but were cautious about the offer itself.
'We are very glad that President Bush succeeded in persuading
President Putin about the need of his system,' governmental spokesman
for the US radar base Tomas Klvana told Czech Television.
'After a long period of 'nyet, nyet, neyt' there is finally a 'da'
from the Russian side,' Klvana said.
Czech Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg told Mlada Fronta Dnes
that the possibility of positioning a radar in Azerbaijan had been
discussed for a long time.
'I am not a military expert, but it is important that both sides
have started communicating,' Schwarzenberg said.
According to Klvana and Defence Minister Vlasta Parkanova, the
talks between the US and the Czech Republic are to proceed despite
Putin's Thursday offer.
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur 
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