President Bush (L) shakes hands with President of Russia Vladimir Putin at the G8 summit in Heiligendamm June 7, 2007. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)

    WASHINGTON, June 12 (Xinhua) -- The United States remained on Tuesday reluctant to make direct judgment on Russia's proposal last week for joint use of a radar station that Russia controls in Azerbaijan as a means of countering missile threats.

    "What we now have is a basis of conversation," White House spokesman Tony Snow told reporters when asked whether Washington was considering Moscow's offer.

    "The implication before the G8 was that Russia was adamantly opposed to any kind of (missile) defense. It turns out that it's not. We look at that as a constructive step forward."

    Snow denied the saying that the White House was playing "gamesmanship" as it weighed Russia's proposal, noting President George W. Bush and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin are due to discuss the matter at the Bush family estate in Kennebunkport, Maine, on July 1-2.

    On June 7, Bush held talks with Putin when the two leaders were attending the Group of Eight (G8) summit in Heiligendamm, Germany. Putin promised Bush that Moscow would not oppose a U.S. plan of a radar-based missile defense system in Europe if it was deployed in Azerbaijan instead of Central Europe.

    The Bush administration has so far withheld judgment on Putin's offer, saying it needs time to study it and consult with allies.

    Russia is angered at the U.S. plan to deploy missile interceptors in Poland and radar units in the Czech Republic as part of a project to extend the missile defense system in Europe.

    The United States insists that the deployment of the system is aimed at preventing attacks from rogue states, not Russia.

Russia calls on U.S. to freeze missile defense system plan in Europe

    MOSCOW, June 9 (Xinhua) -- Russia called on the United States to stop creating an anti-ballistic missile defense system in Europe before the two nations negotiate on the joint use of an Azeri radar system, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Saturday.

    "There must be a freeze on the deployment of missile defense facilities in Europe for the whole period of analysis and negotiations," Lavrov was quoted by the Itar-Tass news agency as saying. Full story

    HEILIGENDAMM, Germany, June 7 (Xinhua) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin promised his U.S. counterpart George W. Bush here Thursday that Moscow would not oppose a U.S. plan of a radar-based missile defense system in Europe if it was deployed in Azerbaijan instead of Central Europe. Full story

NATO chief cautious on Russia's offer for missile defense

    BRUSSELS, June 8 (Xinhua) -- NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer responded cautiously on Friday to Russia' offer for the United States to use a Russian-controlled radar in Azerbaijan for a missile defense shield. Full story

EU: U.S. anti-missile shield should be decided by NATO, EU

    WARSAW, June 5 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. plans to base elements of the anti-missile defense system in Poland and the Czech Republic should be decided at the NATO and EU forum, visiting head of the European Parliament Hans-Gert Poettering said on Tuesday. Full story

China says U.S. missile defense plan may cause weapon proliferation

    BEIJING, June 5 (Xinhua) -- China said on Tuesday that a U.S. plan to deploy a missile defense shield in Eastern Europe may cause new weapon proliferation problems. Full story