Missile Defence and relations with Russia. (22-11-2010)

The new Strategic Concept barely refers to the controversial topic of missile defence. Agreement on a missile defence system had to wait for agreement between NATO and Russia, to be reached during Russian President Medvedev`s participation in the Lisbon Summit on Saturday 20 November. The Summit Declaration covers the topic in paragraphs 30, 36-38. At the same time and according to U.S.President Obama: "We agreed to cooperate on missile defence, which turns a source of past tension into a source of potential cooperation against a shared threat..We see Russia as a partner, not an adversary." As seen before, Summits are occasions for friendly words and faces. The lates summit, in this respect, was no difference. As one can read in the press of member states like Romania and Hungary, NATO`s relations with Russia continue to be deeply controversial.