April 3, 2008 — Congressman Trent Franks (AZ-02) gave the following statement today after hearing news of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) endorsement of a plan to deploy an integrated missile defense system in Europe.  NATO countries recognized specifically the shared threat posed by ballistic missiles and weapons of mass destruction and endorsed the United States’ plan to deploy an X-band radar in the Czech Republic and 10 interceptors in Poland.

“NATO’s endorsement of the missile interceptor site in Europe is a tremendous step in advancing defensive systems to protect the citizens of many nations from the common threat of Middle Eastern ballistic missiles.” Franks stated.  “We must continue cooperating to deploy an effective missile shield against our shared enemies.  Our friends in the Czech Republic who have agreed to host the x-band radar deserve great accolade as they have boldly acted to defend innocent lives, in spite of Russia’s saber rattling. It is my great hope that our friends in Poland will quickly take similar action to finalize an agreement to host the 10 interceptors.”