MOSCOW. March 20 (Interfax) - Iran and North Korea are unable in the foreseeable future to build intercontinental ballistic missiles that a U.S. missile defense system in Europe is designed to counter, says Sergei Koshelev, the chief of the Russian Defense Ministry international military cooperation directorate.
"A demonstration launch, in which some payload is sent to orbit, is one thing. It is another thing when a country builds a finished weapon system, that is, when it is capable of sending not only an object [to space] but a warhead, which can be returned from the orbit to a certain spot on the earth. I think neither Iran nor North Korea is capable of attaining this goal in the foreseeable future," Koshelev said on the Voice of Russia radio in commenting on the U.S. decision not to proceed to the fourth phase of its missile defense program in Europe.
According to U.S. researchers, only the United States, Russia and China have ICBM systems at the present time, he said.
Talking about a NATO-Russia Council working group meeting dealing with disarmament and nonproliferation in Brussels on Monday, Koshelev pointed out that Russian and U.S. participants presented detailed information on the implementation of the 2011 New START Treaty.
"We acknowledged that the treaty is efficient and viable. Certainly, this does not mean that the parties do not have any questions or suggestions regarding the way their partners comply with their obligations, but a bilateral consultative commission exists exactly for resolving such problems. It has held five meetings, and they dealt with all issues pertaining to the treaty's normal functioning," he said.
"Dialogue is proceeding in a constructive manner, and exhaustive answers are being given to questions," Koshelev said. "If some of our answers do not satisfy our partners, we review the issue additionally at home, prepare answers more thoroughly and pass them to the U.S.," he said.
The Defense Ministry has proposed holding a representative international conference of military experts in Moscow to discuss problems of security in Europe, Koshelev said.
"There are a number of serious problems related to European security. Above all, this concerns the condition of conventional armed forces in Europe. It is well-known that Russia suspended its participation in the Conventional Armed Forces in Europe Treaty in 2007. Since then, the prospects of control over conventional weapons in Europe have been quite uncertain," Koshelev said.