Tauscher: Bush-era Pact Can Be Modified To Cover Polish SM-3 Site
By JOHN T. BENNETT
Published: 7 Oct 2009 18:19
The Obama administration is talking with Warsaw about placing some missile interceptors on Polish soil and likely will only need to modify a Bush administration-era pact to formalize the move, a senior State Department official said.
The Polish government and the Bush administration had signed a pact under which Washington would have placed 10 ground-based interceptors in Poland, a plan recently altered by President Barack Obama. Out, too, is a Bush-era plan to put a sophisticated radar suite in Czech Republic.
Ellen Tauscher, undersecretary of state for arms control and international security, said Oct. 7 the Obama administration has offered to place land-based SM-3 interceptors in Poland eventually. Washington and Warsaw already are talking about such a scenario, and they could make such a move official by altering the pact put together during the Bush administration. Adjusting that agreement to reflect how Obama has altered the Bush European missile shield "wouldn't mean major modifications," Tauscher said during a presentation at the Atlantic Council in Washington.
Once work on what she called this "supplemental SOFA," or status of forces agreement, is complete, the Obama administration can begin formalizing its missile defense plans vis-à-vis Poland. Once the revised SOFA is in place, Tauscher said, Washington might move a U.S. Army Patriot missile unit into Poland.
During Oct. 3 testimony before the House Armed Services Committee, Tauscher bluntly revealed having U.S. troops on its soil, as a buffer against nearby Russia, was what the Polish government "really wanted" when it agreed to the Bush administration's missile interceptor plan.
She said the administration also is in talks with Czech officials about placing parts of revamped missile defense systems there.
The Obama plan centers on sea- and land-based Aegis combat systems and SM-3 missiles. Officials say it will be designed to combat what new intelligence reports call the biggest threats from Iran: short- and medium-range missiles. The Bush framework was geared toward combating Iran's long-range missiles. Pointing to the new intel, the Obama team has said development of Tehran's long-range arsenal has slowed.
Some critics of the Obama plan, including Rep. Michael Turner, R-Ohio, ranking member of the House Armed Services strategic forces subcommittee, who also addressed the council, charge the revised plan has made America's European allies and deployed U.S. forces less safe against Iranian launches.
"This administration has brought European missile defense back to square one," Turner said.
Administration officials have said they decided to reveal details of the revamped plan last month instead of waiting until the Pentagon had completed its soup-to-nuts ballistic missile defense assessment and the 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review because some - allegedly inaccurate - information about their plan had leaked.
Critics and supporters of the missile shield have blasted the White House for a botched roll out, which included late notification of Polish and Czech officials who had approved the Bush plan despite domestic skepticism.
Tauscher admitted the roll out "could have been handled better." One output came when she and other administration officials landed in Warsaw for meetings with Polish officials to explain the revised plan. The Poles had read the press reports, "and thought we were coming to kill the 'third site.' " It took a few moments before the American delegation was able to explain they were merely altering the Bush plan.
"What you had," Tauscher said, "was one of those conversations where we were talking past one another."
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