U.S. to seek new missile site if Polish talks fail

By Susan Cornwell

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States will seek another site for its European missile defense project if talks with Poland fail, a senior U.S. official said on Friday.

In an interview with Reuters, the official stressed he was still optimistic about the talks to put 10 missile interceptors in Poland, even though some hard issues remained unresolved.

"But if we are unsuccessful, we will certainly respect their sovereignty, and we will pursue alternatives -- another option to a location for the interceptor site, simply because we need to deal with the (missile) threat," he said, speaking on condition that he not be identified.

Washington wants to install the interceptor rockets in Poland and a tracking radar in the Czech Republic to shield the United States and its allies from attack by what it calls "rogue" states, particularly Iran. Russia opposes the plan.

Poland has set tough conditions for its agreement, including that the United States spend billions of dollars on modernizing Polish air defenses.

The talks with the Czechs on the radar are finished, and that agreement is expected to be signed soon, although the outlook for parliamentary approval is uncertain.

The Bush administration is keen to finalize the Polish deal before President George W. Bush's term in office ends in January -- a fact some Polish officials believe gives them leverage to press their demands.

But the senior U.S. official said Washington also wants to push ahead with the project because "our perception is that there is a threat that is growing from Iran and we need to deal with that threat."