-Caveat Lector- <http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/ap/19991214/ts/russia_missile_test_3.html> Tuesday December 14 8:08 PM ET Russia Launches Missile, Warns West By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV Associated Press Writer MOSCOW (AP) - Russia launched a new strategic missile Tuesday and used the occasion to warn the West against criticizing its campaign in the breakaway republic of Chechnya. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, who witnessed the test, said Russia ``will use all diplomatic and military-political levers in its disposal,'' to confront Western opposition. Putin's comments came in a speech to military officers at the Plesetsk launch pad in northwestern Russia, after the successful test-firing of a Topol-M intercontinental ballistic missile. The missile was launched from Plesetsk and flew across Russia, hitting its target on the Kamchatka peninsula, some 3,400 miles to the east. ``The diplomatic levers are clear, and as for military ones, Tuesday's successful launch of the Topol-M intercontinental ballistic missile is one of them,'' Putin said, according to Russian news agencies. Putin's warning followed last week's tough statement from President Boris Yeltsin, who reminded President Clinton that ``Russia is a great power that possesses a nuclear arsenal.'' Yeltsin was reacting to U.S. criticism of the Chechnya campaign. Putin at the time sought to moderate Yeltsin's statement, saying that Russia and the United States have good relations, but his statement Friday sounded as harsh as Yeltsin's. ``No one can accuse the government of inappropriate use of anti-terrorist measures in Chechnya, call Russia an aggressor or an occupier,'' Putin said. The United States and other Western nations have criticized Moscow for excessive use of force in Chechnya, causing civilian casualties and the exodus of over 230,000 refugees. ``Some nations and blocs under cover of international organizations are interfering into affairs of independent states, and trying to speak to them in the language of force,'' Putin said. ``We are not used to such language, since Russia has a nuclear shield.'' Putin also warned the United States against trying to modify the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty to build anti-missile defenses. Washington says such a defense system is intended to protect the United States from possible missile attacks by rogue nations and wouldn't be capable of deflecting a massive nuclear attack of the kind Russia is capable of launching. But Moscow dismisses the argument and warns that attempts to amend the treaty could trigger a new arms race. The Russian military has said that fitting multiple warheads to the Topol-M missiles would be a part of Moscow's response if the United States walks out of the treaty. Russia is pinning the future of its missile program on the Topol-M. Most of its other long-range missiles are either past their service lifetime or will have to be dismantled if the country ratifies the START-II nuclear disarmament treaty. Unlike Russia's older missiles, the Topol-M is a relatively small, mobile missile designed to be fired from trucks or other vehicles, making it difficult for potential enemies to locate and track. Earlier Stories Russia Launches Strategic Missile (December 14) Russia Test-Fires Ballistic Missile (December 14) DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
