Ukraine offers west information on early missile warning
Russia is opposed to the missile shield over fears that it is might be aimed against it
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Sunday, 17, Aug 2008 09:59
Ukraine has offered to give the west information through its missile early warning radar systems.
The move follows Russia's ending of a 1992 agreement with its neighbour on the use of the systems that can be used to prepare against an attack.
Announcing the decision, Ukraine's foreign ministry said: "The fact that Ukraine is no longer a party to the 1992 agreement allows it to launch active cooperation with western countries to integrate its stations with governments with an interest in receiving data of the situation in space."
It comes after the country's president Viktor Yushchenko expressed concerns over last week's war between Russia and Georgia. The Ukrainian head of state said that only a collective security system could prevent conflicts, such as the recent war over South Ossetia, from breaking out.
He has also called for urgent talks with Russia over the use of one of Ukraine's Black Sea ports to facilitate operations against Georgian territories.
Ukraine's decision comes days after Poland announced that it and the US would begin setting up a long-delayed missile defence system on the former Soviet republic's territory.
The US insists that the defence shield is designed to protect against attacks by "rogue states" such as Iran and has previously stated that it doesn’t seek to defend against Russian attacks.
Russia is opposed to the defence shield over fears that it might be aimed against it.