Military links between Australia, Japan, US worry Russia: official
Military links between Australia, Japan, US worry Russia: official
by Staff Writers
Moscow (AFP) Sept 19, 2007
Growing military cooperation between Australia, Japan and the United States is worrying Moscow, as is work on US-Japanese missile defence cooperation, a top foreign ministry official said in an interview Wednesday.
"The strengthening of US-Australian-Japanese ties has got our attention.... Narrow alliances, especially tight military-political unions, are a worry," Deputy Foreign Ministry Alexander Losyukov told daily Vremya Novostei newspaper.
"We don't hide that concern -- we talk about it with the Australians and the Americans," he said.
Losyukov said Moscow was also worried over US-Japanese cooperation on missile defence.
"They explain this by what appear to be not entirely justified fears about North Korea. It's possible the (North) Koreans could cause some unpleasantness for the Japanese or... us. But they can't reach the Americans and they won't likely be able to for years."
Moscow and Washington have also clashed over US missile defence plans in Central Europe, which Russia says would transform the nuclear balance of power.
