Russia rejects missile shield cooperation-Czechs

BERLIN, May 22 (Reuters) Czech Deputy Prime Minister Alexandr Vondra said today that Russia has so far rejected all US offers to participate in a missile shield to be deployed in the Czech Republic and Poland.

Moscow has denounced plans to place 10 interceptor rockets in Poland and radar in the Czech Republic as a threat to Russia's national security and says it could upset a strategic balance of forces in Europe.

Recently, US Defence Secretary Robert Gates visited Moscow with proposals that would enable the Russians to cooperate on developing the system Washington says is aimed at ''rogue states'' like Iran and North Korea.

''So far Russia has rejected them,'' said Vondra, who is in Berlin for meetings with top German officials about the missile shield and the European Union constitution. ''I say 'so far' because I don't know if they will continue to do so.'' Moscow says the missile shield is aimed at Russia and could eventually house attack missiles or be used to spy on Russian facilities. Washington denies these allegations.

Russia has received support from conservative German Chancellor Angela Merkel's coalition partners, the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD), who say the shield could undermine the global non-proliferation regime.

Merkel has said the missile shield should be discussed broadly with Russia and within NATO.

Vondra said Prague wants Russia to get involved. However, the Czechs would not allow Moscow to veto the shield project.

''For me the first ally of Europe is the United States. We haven't given that up,'' he told reporters at the Czech embassy.

The Czechs and the Poles have a deep historical mistrust of Russia, largely due to four decades of domination by the former Soviet Union which ended with the collapse of Europe's communist governments in 1989.

Reuters DS DB1852