Russia says U.S. remarks on possible radars in Ukraine unexpected

MOSCOW, Oct. 9 (Xinhua) -- Russia is seeking clarification of the statement by a senior U.S. defense official that Ukraine might be included in revised U.S. missile defense plans, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was quoted as saying by Russian news agencies on Friday.

The magazine Defense News quoted Alexander Vershbow, a U.S. assistant secretary of defense, as saying that the United States was considering Ukraine as a place for installing early warning radars.

According to Vershbow, Ukrainian officials showed interest in the deployment of early warning radar systems on its territory.

"We would like to receive full clarification," said Lavrov, who was attending a summit of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in the Moldovan capital of Chisinau.

"This statement is extravagant and rather unexpected," Lavrov told reporters, saying Vershbow "constantly makes statements that raise more questions than give answers."

Lavrov was to meet with his U.S. counterpart Hillary Clinton in Moscow next week. High on the agenda are the new U.S. missile shield program and talks on a new nuclear arms reduction treaty. Lavrov is widely believed to bring up Vershbow's statement at their talks.

U.S. President Barack Obama announced on Sept. 17 that Washington would abandon a Bush-era missile defense shield program while initiating a "phased, adaptive approach" in Eastern Europe.

The Bush administration had planned to deploy 10 missile interceptors in Poland and a radar system in the Czech Republic as part of its European missile shield to protect its European allies from missile threats from "rogue states."

Russia strongly opposed the Bush-era plans, saying they posed a threat to its national security.

Under the new plans, Washington would replace the land-based facilities in eastern Europe with sea-based defenses.