The tough statement reflected a growing strain in US-Russian
ties, despite President Barack Obama's campaign to "reset" American
relations with the Kremlin, which were strained by years of tensions over US
foreign policy and the 2008 Russian-Georgian war.
Medvedev said he still hopes for a deal on the US missile
shield, but he strongly accused the US and its NATO allies of ignoring Russia's
worries.
The US has repeatedly assured Russia that its proposed
missile defense system wouldn't be directed against Russia's nuclear forces,
but Moscow has demanded legally binding assurances, and Medvedev did that again
on Wednesday.
He warned that Russia will station missiles in its
westernmost Kaliningrad region and other areas, if the US continues its plans
without giving Russia firm legal guarantees that the shield isn't directed at
its nuclear forces.
The US missile defense dispute has long tarnished ties
between Moscow and Washington. The Obama administration says the shield is
needed to fend off a potential threat from Iran, but Russia fears that it could
erode the deterrent potential of its nuclear forces.
"If our partners tackle the issue of taking our
legitimate security interests into account in an honest and responsible way,
I'm sure we will be able to come to an agreement," Medvedev said.
"But if they offer us to 'cooperate,' or, to say it honestly, work against
our own interests, we won't be able to reach common ground."
Moscow has agreed to consider a proposal NATO made last fall
to cooperate on the missile shield, but the talks have been deadlocked over how
the system should be operated. Russia has insisted that it should be run
jointly, which NATO has rejected.
Medvedev also warned that Moscow may opt out of the New
START arms control deal with the United States and halt other arms control
talks, if the US proceeds with the missile shield without meeting Russia's
demand. The Americans had hoped that the START treaty would stimulate progress
in further ambitious arms control efforts, but such talks have stalled over
tension on the missile plan.
While the New START doesn't prevent the US from building new
missile defense systems, Russia has said it could withdraw from the treaty, if
it feels threatened by such a system in future.
Medvedev reaffirmed that warning Wednesday, saying that
Russia may opt out of the treaty because of an "inalienable link strategic
offensive and defensive weapons."
The New START has been a key achievement of Obama's policy
of improving US relations with Moscow, which had suffered badly under George W.
Bush administration.
The U.S. plan calls for placing land- and sea-based radars
and interceptors in European locations, including Romania and Poland, over the
next decade and upgrading them over time.
Medvedev said that Russia will carefully watch the
development of the US shield and take countermeasures, if Washington ignores
Russia's concerns. He warned that Moscow would deploy short-range Iskander
missiles in Kaliningrad, a Baltic Sea region bordering Poland, and place
weapons in other areas in Russia's west and south to target US missile defense
sites.
Medvedev added that such Russian strategic nuclear missiles
also would be fitted with systems that would allow them to penetrate
prospective missile defenses.
