Russia denounced the latest missile test by the United States yesterday a test that succeeded with a flash of white light 144 miles above the Pacific Ocean and accused it of threatening to undermine international efforts opposed to a new arms race.
There was delight in Washington after the first missile defence test since George Bush became US President paved the way for further testing of the controversial programme. But in Moscow, Alexander Yakovenko, a Foreign Ministry spokesman, said: "A logical question again arises why take matters to the point of placing under threat the entire internationally agreed structure of nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation, including its core, the 1972 ABM treaty?
"Russia stands by its position that it is vital to maintain and strengthen the ABM treaty and is prepared to discuss all problems in full accordance with its obligations on this cornerstone treaty,'' he said. His comments came as the Chinese President, Jiang Zemin, flew to Moscow for a four-day visit. Mr Zemin and the Russian leader, Vladimir Putin, are expected today to sign a Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation, which is intended to replace a 1949 pact between China and the Soviet Union. In South Korea, 1,000 demonstrators clashed with police at an American bombing range, calling for Seoul to reject any role in the planned system.
China, which is also strongly against the tests, made no formal criticism but the official Xinhua news agency said: "Arms control experts said that the US missile defence plan, opposed by the international community, will not only spark a new arms race, but also threaten world peace and security, and stimulate nuclear proliferation."
The US, where the proposal for a "Star Wars" missile defence system was first made by the former president Ronald Reagan in 1983, has used the threat of "rogue nations" to defend the idea. It accepts that it would breach the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile treaty with Russia. Mr Bush will hold private talks with Mr Putin this week at the G8 summit in Italy. The Bush administration says that changing geopolitical circumstances have made the 1972 treaty obsolete.
The test involved destroying an intercontinental missile with a mock warhead using an interceptor missile launched almost 5,000 miles away in the Pacific. Greenpeace protesters briefly delayed the test when four activists were arrested near an air force base in California, from where the "warhead" was fired. Greenpeace spokeswoman, Samantha Magick, said: "The Star Wars programme threatens to start a new nuclear arms race. Pacific island states who are still waiting for compensation for nuclear tests carried out decades ago are being put at risk again."
© 2001 Independent Digital (UK) Ltd
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