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Bush Says He'll Leave ABM Treaty NewsMax.com WiresCRAWFORD, Texas - President Bush said Thursday his administration would leave the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty "on our timetable," despite opposition from Russia. "We will withdraw from the ABM Treaty on our timetable at a time convenient to America," Bush said when asked about the issue by reporters. "One of the things I've said in the course of questions about the ABM Treaty, I said that we would consult closely with our allies in Europe as well as continue to consult closely with Mr. Putin," Bush said. "I have no specific timetable in mind," Bush said. "I do know that the ABM Treaty hampers us from doing what we need to do. And, secondly, I do know that Mr. Putin is aware of our desires to move beyond the ABM Treaty and we will." Some say the treaty is already void because the U.S. signed it with the now-defunct Soviet Union. Bush's remarks were some of his most candid on the subject and came as he and Russian President Vladimir Putin prepare to meet later this year. Bush and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld had promised not to violate the ABM Treaty. They are trying to convince Russia to agree to a new and as-yet-undefined strategic framework that would allow the U.S. missile defense system. If they fail, the United States will give Russia six months' notice and withdraw from the treaty to carry out the program. A Pentagon treaty compliance review group has determined that several missile defense tests planned for 2001 may violate the treaty, but it has stopped short of making a final judgment. The findings must go through an interagency process to determine treaty compliance. If there is a clear violation, the Bush administration can decide to delay or change the tests, or it can decide to withdraw from the treaty with six months prior notice to Russia. At issue is the Bush administration's vow to develop and deploy a National Missile Defense system to protect the United States from missile threats by rogue nations, such as North Korea, Iraq and Iran. The system envisioned would involve a radar system to detect a small-scale missile launch which would then, in theory, be struck down in the lower reaches of space by U.S. interceptor missiles. The system under development by the Pentagon has failed in two out of three flight tests and leading scientists question whether the project is technologically feasible at all. In addition to technological hurdles, the project faces a swirl of controversy on the international stage, where China and U.S. allies say U.S. development of a missile defense could spark an arms race, particularly in Asia. Copyright 2001 by United Press International. All rights reserved.
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