WARSAW, May 27 (Xinhua) -- A battery of Patriot missiles which is to be stationed in Poland should be deployed still this year, and serve not only for the training of American personnel but also for Poland's air defense, Polish Defense Minister Bogdan Klich said on Wednesday.

    "The declaration on strategic cooperation from August of last year clearly says that the installation of the first battery of Patriot missiles should take place no later than the end of this year. We stick to this date in talks with our American partners," Klich was quoted as saying by the Polish news agency PAP.

    The minister said the two sides are in talks on a status of foreign soldiers agreement which will enable the stationing of 100to 110 U.S. military personnel.

    "We are finalizing the talks, we plan one or two more sessions in June and in case a final agreement is not reached we plan a successive session for July," Klich noted.

    A spokeswoman for Pentagon, however, said earlier this month that the Patriot missiles will be placed in Poland only for training purposes.

    Under the Polish-U.S. accord signed last year, 10 ground base interceptors are to be installed in Redzikowo, northern Poland, as part of a larger missile defense system that would include a radar system in the Czech Republic.

    Russia objects to the anti-missile shield plan, warning it will deploy a short-range missile system in its Baltic enclave of Kaliningrad bordering Poland, in response to the U.S. plan.

    U.S. President Barack Obama has said he supports missile defense in principle but wants to make sure the system is reliable and does not detract from other security priorities.

    Warsaw first asked for the Patriot unit after Moscow condemned the missile shield plan as a threat to Russia.