Russian military offer NATO missile shield for Eastern Europe.

MOSCOW (Itar-Tass) - If NATO agrees to create a joint
missile shield Russia may take over the mission to protect the territory
of Eastern Europe, the Black, Baltic and Barents Seas, a high-ranking
military commander said on Thursday.
Space Forces Commander Oleg Ostapenko told a briefing Russia is
proposing to NATO to divide the defense space into sectors and have a
single command center.
"We suggest that NATO and Russia are responsible for certain parts of
the territory where each party will detect and destroy attacking ballistic
missiles," he told a briefing.
"The decision on the use of missile defense forces shall be adopted
according to common rules in the framework of a single information space,"
he added.
"Proceeding from the geographic situation of our country we have a
possibility to ensure missile defense of the eastern part of Europe, as
well as the Black, Baltic and Barents Seas," Ostapenko said.
He listed three advantages of the joint missile shield.
It will lift Russian concerns over the "anti-Russian potential" of the
planned NATO missile shield in Eastern Europe as the deployment of foreign
missile defense elements would be no longer necessary there.
Secondly, cooperation will help the parties decrease costs as the
territory of NATO responsibility will decrease.
Thirdly, the basis for multilateral and bilateral technological
cooperation will appear.
"We are ready jointly with NATO experts design the architecture of the
system from the very idea and the choice of optimal radar deployment sites
to the creation and operation of joint command and information processing
centers," Ostapenko said.
"It is appropriate to create the joint missile defense by the
territorial principle and through dividing the responsibility of certain
countries or groups of countries for the detection and elimination of
missiles in a concrete defense sector. Naturally, Russia may be in charge
of the eastern sector that would include a part of the territory of
neighboring states and seas. The sectoral approach to the European missile
shield will help adequately and rapidly react to existing and would-be
missile threats," he said.
The commander added Russia will not deploy its missile defense
elements outside the national territory in case the joint missile shield
is agreed while other countries may join the protection of the Russian
sector of responsibility.
"As for the European continent and security concerns of our European
partners, I would like to say that the Russian early warning system can
timely detect ballistic missile launches not only from the Middle or the
Near East, but from the whole eastern direction in general," Ostapenko
said.
He said the Russian contribution to the joint missile defense may
comprise the Qabala radar in Azerbaijan, the Armavir radar, mobile radars
of the Nebo (Sky) type, and future space-based means to detect ballistic
launches. Besides, the future Russian S-500 air defense complex has to be
capable of intercepting hypersonic targets.
Ostapenko said the defense would need a joint command center "for
maximum integration of command and guiding means and combat control." The
center shall be in charge of receiving information, distributing targets
according to the location of national anti-ballistic defense means, and
designating targets to them.
Russian experts can provide for round-the-clock duty in the combat
command center, participate on a rotation basis in the command of the
center, and design joint rules of missile defense.
-0-nec