Ukraine not asked to host U.S. radar

KIEV, Ukraine, Oct. 10 (UPI) -- The United States has never asked Ukraine if it would be willing to be a site for part of a missile-interceptor system, President Viktor Yushchenko said Friday.

The president was responding to a report that a U.S. military official had suggested Ukraine was on the list of "possible early-warning sites," the Russian Novosti news agency reported.

"I wouldn't want to see a hue and cry over the issue so I will simply say this: The Ukrainian side has not received any proposals," Yushchenko said.

President Obama has rejected a plan by the administration of President George W. Bush to place a radar installation in the Czech Republic and interceptor missiles in Poland. While U.S. officials said the missile shield was aimed at countering threats from Iran and North Korea, the plan infuriated the Russian government.

Yushchenko said he would like to link the radar facilities at Sevastopol and Mukachevo to European or global security networks.