U.S. lawmakers deny funding for missile defense site in Poland
WASHINGTON, Nov. 6 (Xinhua) -- Negotiators from both U.S. Senate and House agreed Tuesday not to approve funds to build missile defense site in Poland as requested by the Bush administration.
As they endorsed a defense spending bill worth 460 billion U.S. dollars for fiscal year starting Oct. 1, the funds for the Polish site were left out.
The move reflects skepticism among U.S. lawmakers towards the proposed missile defense plan in Europe.
The plan envisions ten interceptors in Poland and a radar system in the Czech Republic.
Russia firmly opposed the move, but the Bush administration insisted that the system is targeting potential missile attacks from Iran in the future.
Rep. John Murtha, a Pennsylvania Democrat who chairs a House defense spending panel, said the administration's plan is premature.
"The United States does not have a basic agreement with the European governments over the complete details of this program," he said.
Washington has not yet secured Poland's or the Czech Republic's agreement on the plans.