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U.S. activates missile defense site in Romania...Says it won't be used against Russian missiles

By Dan Calabrese ——--May 13, 2016

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One of my earliest, and most enduring, criticisms of Barack Obama concerned his welching on a commitment his predecessor made to install missle defense systems in Eastern Europe - specifically Poland and the Czech Republic. The Bush Administration wanted a line of defense for European allies against potential Russian aggression. As soon as Obama became president, he canceled these plans because he was concerned the Russians wouldn't like it. You know what followed. Hillary's dumbass "re-set button," the invasion of Ukraine, further Russian help for the nuclear ambitions of Iran . . . Obama's reflex to appease Russia has been a disaster at every turn.
So it was certainly a surprise to me when I saw that the U.S. now plans to activate an Eastern European missile defense system - the Czech Republic, but in Romania, with one in Poland to follow. It's seven years too late, but it's better than nothing. But wait. The Russians are once again unhappy. So who cares, right? We have to think about our own security and that of our allies, right? If the Russians don't like it, tough. Er, not so fast. This is still the Obama Administration we're talking about, and they want it known that this move is designed to protect against missiles from Iran, not Russia. In fact, if the Russians want to launch missile attacks, they can apparently expect no defenses to be employed whatsoever:
"As long as Iran continues to develop and deploy ballistic missiles, the United States will work with its allies to defend NATO," said U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary Robert Work, standing in front of the shield's massive gray concrete housing that was adorned with a U.S. flag. Despite Washington's plans to continue to develop the capabilities of its system, Work said the shield would not be used against any future Russian missile threat. "There are no plans at all to do that," he told a news conference.
Before the ceremony, Frank Rose, deputy U.S. assistant secretary of state for arms control, warned that Iran's ballistic missiles can hit parts of Europe, including Romania. When complete, the defensive umbrella will stretch from Greenland to the Azores. On Friday, the United States will break ground on a final site in Poland due to be ready by late 2018, completing the defense line first proposed almost a decade ago. The full shield also includes ships and radars across Europe. It will be handed over to NATO in July, with command and control run from a U.S. air base in Germany. Russia is incensed at such of show of force by its Cold War rival in formerly communist-ruled eastern Europe. Moscow says the U.S.-led alliance is trying to encircle it close to the strategically important Black Sea, home to a Russian naval fleet and where NATO is also considering increasing patrols.
What is the logic of activating a missile defense site, but vowing you will only use it to shoot down missiles from certain countries and not from others? The Russians have been upset about the idea of a U.S. missile defense system ever since the days of the Soviet Union and "Star Wars" (which was the left's derisive name for Ronald Reagan's Strategic Defense Initiative). The correct answer to their objection has always been simple: If you don't want this to be a problem for you, don't launch any missile attacks against us. Easy peasy.

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But that's not the Obama response. The Obama response is oh, hey, don't worry. We won't use this against your missiles, Vladimir! Wonderful. By the way, didn't Obama just negotiate the greatest deal ever with Iran to keep them from getting nukes and thus from being a threat? How well did that work out? So well that even Obama - who can't stand missile defenses - is now putting them in Eastern Europe out of fear that Iran will launch missile attacks. Aren't you glad we lifted those economic sanctions and unfroze Iran's financial assets? They really shaped up! Nothing this administration does makes any sense.
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Dan Calabrese——

Dan Calabrese’s column is distributed by HermanCain.com, which can be found at HermanCain

Follow all of Dan’s work, including his series of Christian spiritual warfare novels, by liking his page on Facebook.

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