Q&A on US Global Missile Defense Program

Q&A on US Global Missile Defense Program

Alexander Yakovenko, the Official Spokesman of Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Answers a Question from ITAR-TASS News Agency About Canada's Position with Regard to Participation in the US Global Missile Defense Program

Question: How can you comment on the Canadian Prime Minister's statement that the decision by Ottawa on participation in the United States Global Missile Defense program is being postponed?

Answer: This is a well-considered and responsible position. It is necessary not to develop and build any new destabilizing weapon systems now, but to pool the efforts of the international community for preventing the proliferation of the already existing systems of this kind.

In the first place it is necessary to strengthen the weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile nonproliferation regimes. In the Russian side's view, attempts to create a global ABM system, on the contrary, contribute to proliferation, to a new arms race, including in space.

We hope that together with France, Canada, the United States and our other partners it will be possible to take at the upcoming G8 Summit in Evian some new decisions bolstering the multilateral nonproliferation regimes and to develop the Global Partnership ideas, adopted at the G8 leaders' previous meeting at Kananaskis, Canada.

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