Copyright CanWest Interactive, Inc. Jul 9, 2008

PRAGUE -The United States and the Czech Republic signed an agreement yesterday to build part of a U. S. missile defence shield in the central European state despite opposition from its former Cold War master, Russia. The U. S. and Czech foreign ministers toasted with champagne after signing the accord to place a tracking radar southwest of Prague as part of a system to protect against the perceived threat of missile attack from countries such as Iran. Their celebration, however, was tempered by criticism from Russia, which threatened to respond with unspecified "military-technical methods" if the system goes ahead, and by the U. S. failure so far to secure a companion deal to station 10 interceptor missiles in neighbouring Poland.

Credit: Reuters