50 states to attend Moscow-hosted missile defense conference

PanARMENIAN.Net - Participants from 50 countries will attend a missile defense conference in Moscow on May 3-4, Chief of the Russian General Staff, Army Gen. Nikolai Makarov said, according to RIA Novosti.

“There will be more than 150 participants from 50 states,” Makarov told journalists in Brussels on Wednesday, April 26 after the NATO-Russia Council meeting. “NATO’s 28 member states have confirmed their participation.”

The conference, to be held by the Russian Defense Ministry, will also be attended by representatives of China, South Korea, Japan, the CIS and Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) countries.

The proposed U.S.-led missile shield in Europe remains a major source of tension between Russia and the United States, and the Kremlin has threatened to deploy tactical weapons close to Europe if it is not made full partner in the scheme.