Putin Blasts Missile Shield Scheme

Russian President Vladimir Putin took a moment during his final parliamentary address to make it eminently clear that he disapproves of a U.S. plan to create a missile shield in Eastern Europe, vowing to put a hold on Russian compliance with a key European military treaty in retaliation.

BBC:

The Russian president suggested that his country should freeze its compliance with the 1990 Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE) treaty—which limits military deployments across the continent—until all NATO countries had ratified it.

The treaty was adapted in 1999 after the collapse of the Warsaw Pact, but NATO states have not yet ratified the new version, linking it to the withdrawal of Russian forces from Georgia and Moldova.

Mr. Putin accused NATO states of exploiting the situation to increase their military presence near Russia.

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Click here for the BBC’s excerpts from Putin’s speech.

AP Photo/Mikhail Metzel

Upping the ante:  Russian President Putin.