Without NATO, Russia Holds Its Own Missile Defense Conference

Russia's Defense Ministry is holding the International Conference on Missile Defense in Moscow from May 3 to May 4. The conference is a response to the cancellation of the Russia-NATO Summit, which was to be held in Chicago in late May. The summit would have been the first of its kind since 2007, when Russian President Vladimir Putin railed against NATO in a speech. When the 2012 summit was announced, the two sides began lengthy negotiations to sort out their many disagreements.

The countries' main point of contention is the United States' plans for ballistic missile defense (BMD) installations in Central Europe and Turkey. Moscow does not believe these plans will erode Russia's nuclear deterrent, but they represent U.S. military guarantees along the former Soviet border. Russia wants to be integrated into the BMD plans and receive written legal guarantees from Washington that the future system is not meant as a move against Moscow. The United States has made it clear that it will grant neither concession. Instead, Washington is offering to share data with Russia. Washington may be willing to integrate some Russian sensors and radars so long as the United States can maintain control over its own systems and Russia has no capability to break the chain within the system.

The day before the conference in Moscow, Russia said it would respond if the United States moved forward with its BMD plans. Russia has already activated the S-400 air defense system in Kaliningrad, and there are reports Russia could deploy Iskander short-range ballistic missile systems by the end of the year. Moscow is considering other means to counter U.S. BMD plans, but further moves will carry major risks.