Poland is ready to give Russian inspectors access to a missile defence site that Washington hopes to build on Polish soil, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski was quoted on Thursday as saying.
Sikorski was speaking to the Russian daily Gazeta as negotiations continue over the US plans to site missile defence facilities in both Poland and the Czech Republic, plans that have prompted protests from Moscow.
"We are ready to grant Russian representatives regular access to the bases for inspections," Sikorski said.
"But of course we are against a permanent presence by Russian officials," Sikorski added.
Moscow has threatened to target its missiles at former Warsaw Pact countries that host Western military facilities, saying the US missile shield plans threaten Russian security.
Washington says the facilities are not directed against Russia but needed to protect against what it calls rogue states, particularly Iran.
The idea of giving Russian inspectors access to the facilities is intended by Washington to ease Moscow's concerns.
The missile shield plan entails siting missile interceptors in Poland and a linked radar in the Czech Republic.
Poland is still negotiating with the United States on the terms for setting up the interceptors, while Washington already secured last month a main agreement with the Czech Republic on the proposed facility there.
