| Fact Sheet Office of the Spokesman Washington, DC July 10, 2008 Ballistic Missile Defense Agreement Between the United States and the Czech RepublicOn July 8, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Czech Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg signed in Prague the Agreement Between the United States and the Czech Republic on Establishing a United States Ballistic Missile Defense Radar Site in the Czech Republic. This legally-binding agreement calls for the establishment and operation of a U.S. ballistic missile defense radar site in the Czech Republic. It is an important step in our efforts to protect the United States and the Czech Republic, as well as our other NATO Allies, from the growing threat posed by the proliferation of ballistic missiles of increasingly greater ranges and sophistication, and potentially armed with weapons of mass destruction. This radar will provide precision tracking of ballistic missiles launched out of the Middle East, and will be linked to other U.S. missile defense facilities in Europe and the United States.
In addition to deepening our bilateral strategic relationship with the Czech Republic, we strongly believe that our cooperation in the field of missile defense will make a substantial contribution to NATO’s collective capability to counter existing and future threats in the Twenty-First Century, and will be an integral part of any future NATO-wide missile defense architecture. Upon ratification by the Czech Parliament, this agreement will provide for the United States to construct, maintain, and operate the radar, which will be located within the Brdy Military Area. In its construction, maintenance, and operations, the United States will protect the natural environment. The Czech Republic retains full sovereignty over the site. The United States and the Czech Republic are finalizing a separate agreement to address the status of U.S. forces to be deployed to the territory of the Czech Republic. Additionally, the United States and the Czech Republic completed negotiations on July 9 on a bilateral Ballistic Missile Defense Framework Agreement for facilitating government-to-government and industry-to-industry missile defense cooperation, including in the field of research and development. U.S. and Czech military forces will cooperate in providing physical security for the radar facility. The United States will provide the Czech Government with situational awareness into operations, testing, and training at the radar facility, which includes receiving real-time information of hostile ballistic missiles being tracked by the radar, intercept information, and the status of the U.S. missile defense system in Europe. |
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