Nato invites Russia to summit

Medvedev to join Lisbon meeting to discuss Moscow’s place in plans for expanded European missile defence system.

Nato summit

Nato leaders have approved plans to expand a European missile defence system that would protect all of the military alliance’s member nations, including the US.

Barack Obama, the US president, announced the agreement on Friday at the end of the first day of a summit of leaders from the 28-member grouping in Lisbon, the Portuguese capital.

Dmitry Medvedev, the Russian president, had previously fought against the missile shield, saying it was a threat to his country’s own nuclear deterrence. But Nato on Friday decided to invite Russia to join the defence shield, extending its protection across Russian territory.

Medvedev will be arriving in Lisbon on Saturday to discuss Russia’s role within the Nato plans. Russia may demand leeway over the defence system, and also on Nato expansion into former Soviet states.

Al Jazeera’s Neave Barker reports from Moscow.

Source: Al Jazeera