Minister of Defense: “Early warning center” may be functional by mid-2011

An “early warning center” that the United States are planning to build on Czech territory as part of a NATO missile defense system could be functional by mid-2011. Minister of Defense Alexandr Vondra said in a program on Czech Television on Sunday that the project will be partly financed by the government starting in 2012. Local soldiers will be operating the warning center after being trained by American forces. Mr Vondra added that while the Czech Republic had its own surveillance and defense systems for air space, they were not equipped to register activity in more remote locations such as the Middle East. The United States have earmarked 38 million Czech crowns or USD 2 million to be put into the construction of the “early warning center” in 2011 and 2012.

President Barack Obama last year announced the dropping of plans for an American anti-missile shield that would have included a radar base in the Czech Republic.

Author: Sarah Borufka