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Middle East and North Africa

Rose Gottemoeller: Europe needs missile defense system due to missile threats from Iran

Last week, Sergei Lavrov said that if Iran's nuclear program issue is resolved than NATO would have no grounds to deploy a missile defense system in Europe

Acting US Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Rose Gottemoeller EPA/MARTIAL TREZZINI

Acting US Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Rose Gottemoeller

© EPA/MARTIAL TREZZINI

WASHINGTON, December 11. /ITAR-TASS/. The US considers necessary to deploy a missile defense system in Europe since Iran poses not only nuclear, but also missile threat. This stated Acting US Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Rose Gottemoeller in an interview to Itar-Tass on Tuesday.

“Iran poses a threat not only because there is a possibility that they may develop nuclear weapons. They made a great advance in the missile program, and this is the reason why we are developing a missile defense system,”she said.

Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stated last week that “if all the agreements reached with Iran will be fully implemented and if the issue of Iran's nuclear program will be completely resolved, it will deprive the grounds for NATO to create a missile defense system in Europe”.

Rose Gottemoeller took part in a reception at Russia’s Embassy in Washington to mark the completion of the Russian-American program Megatons to Megawatts, which lasted 20 years.

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