MOSCOW, September 30. /TASS/: The deployment of intermediate-and shorter-range missiles in Central and Western Europe will radically change security conditions for Russia and will force Moscow to take compensatory measures, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said in an interview with the journal International Affairs on Monday.
"I believe that the emergence of such systems in Central and also Western Europe will radically change the situation from the viewpoint of ensuring our national security," the high-ranking diplomat said.
"All this is related to the flight-in time and the time of response to a particular launch. This is because any missile attack warning system in any country cannot determine in a remote-controlled manner whether a launched missile is outfitted with a nuclear or a conventional warhead," the senior diplomat said.
"The emergence of such weapons, which would cover by their range capability a considerable part of the territory of Russia, at least its European part for sure, if we speak about the hypothetical deployment of such systems in Europe, would require compensatory measures from us," he stressed
These compensatory measures should not necessarily be related to the deployment of similar missiles in the areas, from which "they could reach, so to speak, these new systems, either American or someone else’s," he said.
The deployment "only in those areas is absolutely unnecessary," he stressed. "That is why, it is necessary to recall the lessons of the Caribbean crisis and refresh this in memory."
As the senior Russian diplomat noted, Moscow is proposing "an alternative in the form of a moratorium on the deployment of such systems."
"We have announced our moratorium and believe that responsible politicians in NATO circles could take a similar step," he added.
"They are telling us all the time that NATO is a defensive alliance. We are constantly reading assurances that NATO is fighting for peace and is a guarantor of security. So, please, dear Sirs, demonstrate in practice how you will be further fighting for peace," the senior Russian diplomat said, calling on Western colleagues.
