One step forward, one step back

Right-wingers in the US will try to make political capital out of Obama’s decision to give up missile defense in Europe, warns Robert Norris, a senior research associate at the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Norris noted that at a press conference Thursday, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said that “at some future point, various phases down the line, 5-8 years later, missile defenses still could go into Poland and the Czech Republic.”

“There is going to be some sort of ballistic missile defense put in place, and it will not antagonize the Russians as the old one did,” said Norris. “It will be more effective, cheaper and come on sooner. How do the Republicans argue against that?”