In a press conference at the Pentagon, The United States is likely to announce plans to scrap the missile defense shield this morning. This decision is seen as the largest change in foreign policy during the first year of the Obama Presidency.
The decision was made after a panel conducted a strategic review of the missile defense shield and made a recommendation to the President. Once the President made the decision, he called allies around the world to inform them of his decision, especially in light of leaks to the media that were starting to spread the news around the world.
The plan will likely be seen as an attempt by the President Obama and his administration to cater to the Russians who have been lobbying to stop the program since the beginning. They claim that the shield threatened their security. Poland and Czech Republic were very much in favor of the program and are upset that the program is being scrapped.
The idea behind the shield was to protect the western allies of the United States from missile attacks launched out of Iran. In exchange for scrapping the program, it is possible that Russia will ally with the United States to push for harsh sanctions on Iran if they do not negotiate with the West. Also, the United States and Russia are about to re-negotiate the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, and it is expected that this agreement will cut the number of nuclear warheads and delivery systems in both the United States and Russia. The treaty is the only one of its kind between the two countries that has a verification mechanism to make sure both sides are holding up their end of the bargain.
This apparent appeasement of Russia brings back memories of the Cold War, when the U.S. negotiated with Russia by giving up more than they got in return. Apparently, the White House felt this was the right decision because the latest intelligence shows that Iran is not pursuing intercontinental ballistic missiles and other long-range missiles. Iran is instead pursuing shorter to medium range missiles.
The Secretary General of NATO was quoted as saying the scrapping of the program is “a positive step.” There are reports that the administration will announce they are instead developing a short-range sea-based missile defense system that would be temporary. A more permanent system will not be ready until 2015, but by that time it will be almost guaranteed Iran will have a nuclear weapon and will hold all the leverage in negotiations. President Obama and President Medvedev will meet next week at the United Nations to discuss Iran, the missile shield and the START treaty.
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