U.S. missile defense system in Deveselu, Romania
A U.S. antimissile defense system in Romania aimed at protecting NATO members from threats by “rogue” nations became operational on Thursday in a move that infuriated Russia.
The missile interceptor station, located in Deveselu in southern Romania, will help defend NATO members against the threat of short- and medium-range ballistic missiles, particularly from the Middle East, officials said.
“Today, the United States and Romania make history in delivering this system to the NATO alliance,” said Adm. Mark Ferguson, the U.S. commander in Europe and Africa, at an inauguration ceremony alongside NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg.
But Russia sees the missile system as a security threat right on its doorstep, despite the U.S. and NATO insisting it is not aimed at undermining Moscow’s defenses.
“From the very beginning of this whole story, we have said that according to our experts’ opinion, we are convinced that the deployment of the missile defense system is truly a threat to Russia’s security,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters in Moscow.
Relations between NATO and Moscow have sharply deteriorated since Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in March 2014, sparking fears among other eastern European countries that they too could be the targets of Russian aggression. (AFP)
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