Moscow - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said Sunday that the US need not back down completely on a proposed missile defence system in eastern Europe, ahead of US President Barack Obama's visit to Moscow beginning Monday. In an interview reported by the state Itar-Tass news agency, Medvedev said "we are against the deployment of elements of an anti- missile defence system in Poland and the Czech Republic ... (but) in order to resolve this issue we do not necessarily have to cancel out all the previous decisions that have been made."
The missile shield plan was initiated by the previous Bush administration to fend off Iran's growing missile capability. Moscow has strongly opposed the idea, threatening to target Poland and the Czech Republic if they host the bases. The plan is currently under review by the Obama administration.
"The previous administration ... took a very hard-headed position on this issue, the current administration is ready to discuss this topic," Medvedev said.
The US and Russia at the meeting are expected to work towards a replacement deal for the 1991 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, or START, which expires December 5.
Medvedev added Sunday that "it is enough to show restraint, to show an ability to compromise. And then we can agree on the basic foundations of a new START treaty, and agree at the same time on how we will approach missile defence."
