U.S., Lithuania deny missile shield talks

VILNIUS, Lithuania, June 18 (UPI) -- The United States and Lithuania deny they are in negotiations to put anti-missile shield defenses in the Baltic country should a U.S.-Poland deal fall through.

The denials came from both nations Tuesday after Poland's deputy foreign minister asserted Washington and Vilnius were discussing the possibility of putting anti-missile missiles in Lithuania should the United States be unable to reach such an agreement with Poland, RAI Novosti reported Wednesday.

U.S. State Department spokesman Tom Casey called the characterization by Polish Deputy Foreign Minister Witold Waszczykowski "an overstatement of any conversations we might have had with the government of Lithuania."

And Lithuania's Foreign Ministry told the news agency that his country "is not holding any talks on the deployment of a part of the missile defense shield on its territory."

Waszczykowsky had said on Tuesday that talks between Washington and Vilnius were ongoing, saying, "Lithuania's defense minister proposed it himself in May and the Polish side knows it."

The United States is proposing to place 10 anti-missile missiles in Poland and a radar installation in the Czech Republic as part of a system Washington says is meant to guard against ballistic missile attacks from "rogue nations." Russia vehemently opposed the move.