Can Russian-US ties survive a missile shield?

Russia and the United States are currently involved in a fierce tussle over the US plan to deploy a missile shield - "theater missile defense" (TMD) systems - in Eastern Europe. There has been talk of the return to a Cold War mentality.

Early this year the US proposed to Poland and the Czech Republic the resumption of negotiations over establishing TMD bases in their countries. Soon afterwards the Bush administration announced its plan to deploy 10 land-based long-range missile defense batteries in Poland and one medium-range radar facility in the Czech Republic by 2010.

Russia's immediate response was fury, accusing the US of threatening Russian security. The dispute has been heating up with Russia resorting to retaliatory measures, causing bilateral ties to approach the freezing point.