MOSCOW. Feb 3 (Interfax) - The development of the global missile defense system by the U.S. prevents Moscow from negotiating further reductions of strategic offensive weapons with Washington, Russian Foreign Ministry Security and Disarmament Department Director Mikhail Ulyanov said.
"The accelerated augmentation of the global missile defense system's potential, which is continuing despite obvious progress in resolving the Iranian nuclear problem, does not contribute to further reductions in nuclear weapons indeed," Ulyanov said in an interview with Interfax.
"As long as the U.S. continues to strengthen its security by ways reducing the level of Russia's security, it is hardly possible to talk about further nuclear disarmament," he added.
Moscow sees the U.S. explanation that it is building its missile defense system in response to a threat from Iran as farfetched, he said.
"I'd like to remind you that, when the Barack Obama administration rationalized the 'phased, adaptive approach' toward building the European segment of the global missile defense in 2009, the project's adaptability was presented chiefly as its capability of being modified in accordance with the evolution of external threats. The Americans declared at all levels at the time that, if the threat from the Iranian side is eliminated, there may be no need for the European segment," he said.
"But what we see now is that, despite significant progress in the Iranian dossier, the missile defense program is continuing to be developed at the previous pace. Only the arguments have been adapted, like the agreement with Tehran is not final, and danger comes not only from Iran's nuclear but also from its missile program, and the missile risks are also associated with other countries possessing missile technology, and so on," Ulyanov said.
"The missile defense system is being created with apparently different goals, and Iran in this case is no more than just a pretext, and a very unconvincing one, too," he said.