SOFIA, May 17 (Xinhuanet) -- Russian State Duma defense committee member Nikolai Bezborodov has said Russia may readjust its defense policies if the United States sets up military bases in Bulgaria and Romania and send troops there from elsewhere, Bulgaria's independent newspaper the Monitor reported on Tuesday.

    Bezborodov said the eastward redeployment of US troops stationed in Europe will impose serious threats to Russia's national security.

    Russia should respond to the move and modify its own defense policies in view of the deployment of US troops in countries such as Bulgaria.

    Bulgaria will host US military forces in three bases, BulgarianDefense Minister Nikolai Svinarov was quoted by state news agency BTA as saying on Saturday.

    "It remains still to be determined which bases are to be chosen,but so far we know that there will be three of them," Svinarov said.

    US officials have said they could use Bulgarian sites to deploytroops on rotational training tours as part of a broader US strategy of shifting troops based in Europe further east.

    Earlier this year, the top commander of US and NATO troops in Europe, General James Jones, said in Sofia that he would propose to the US Congress "four or five Bulgarian military facilities foruse by US forces."

    Bulgaria joined NATO last year along with six other countries. Enditem