Obama to Shelve U.S. Missile Defense Plan

ABC News has learned that the Obama administration is adjusting plans for a missile defense shield in Europe by scrapping plans to base sites in Poland and the Czech Republic in favor of a more flexible, shorter-range system that would counter a potential short- or mid-range Iranian missile threat to Europe.

The move will surely be welcomed by Russia, which has long opposed the plan originally conceived under the Bush administration. Russian President Dmitri Medvedev and his predecessor Vladimir Putin had opposed the U.S. plan to base components in Poland and the Czech Republic, claiming they were designed to counter Russia instead of Iran.
A senior U.S. official says the administration is "adjusting and enhancing the planned missile defense in Europe," adding that intelligence now suggests that the Iranian missile threat to Europe is focused more on short and medium range missiles rather than from long-range missiles currently under development.

Another U.S. official said, "This improvement to the system has nothing to do with Russia and everything to do with Iran."
As originally planned under the Bush administration the missile defense plan would have placed a missile radar system in the Czech Republic and 10 long-range missile interceptors in Poland. Both countries had actively sought the placement of the system in their countries.

The U.S. already has long-range missile interceptors at Fort Greeley, Alaska, and Vandenberg Air Force Base in California that are focused on a potential North Korean long-range missile threat.
The Obama administration's proposal will favor "a flexible system" that will cover all of Europe by deploying multiple systems that won't be anchored to one spot.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates and vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. James Cartwright will brief reporters this morning at the Pentagon to discuss the details of the shift in plans.
The timing of the announcement is noteworthy. Next week President Obama will spend the better part of four days in New York City, much of it at the United Nations where on Thursday he will personally chair a Security Council Summit on non-proliferation.

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/Inter...d=ESPNheadline

I think we can add this to Rick's list.