Paroubek claims US Russian agreement on US missile defence is close

Social Democrat leader Jiří Paroubek, who is on a visit to Russia has claimed that an agreement between the US and Russia concerning a missile defense system to be placed in Poland and the Czech Republic is close to being finalized. In an apparent dig at Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek, he also stated that Poland had played a far more meaningful role in the negotiations than did the Czech Republic. The purported deal would allow the Russian authorities to inspect the US military sites, ensure that Russian airspace is not monitored by the radar, and also to not install rockets in Poland until a perceivable threat is discerned. Despite this apparent agreement, Russia continues to point out that it is opposed in principle to the Bush administration project.