BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

25/08/2009

Lithuania tests new short-range missile system

DPA

Vilnius - Scientists in the Baltic state of Lithuania say they have tested a new missile system that could counter a Russian threat to station missiles on its borders, reported the Baltic News Service Tuesday. A group of scientists from the Institute of Defence Technologies at Kaunas University said they had successfully tested a KTU GTI-1 rocket in the Pabrade military zone near Lithuania's border with Belarus.

The missile system is able to travel at 1,500 kilometers per hour and the test firing covered 10 kilometres.

Missiles have been a sensitive topic in the Baltic states ever since Russia announced in 2007 plans to position its own short-range Iskander missiles in its Baltic enclave of Kaliningrad, which borders Lithuania and Poland.

Lithuania condemned the move at the time, but Russia said it was responding to a planned US "missile shield" system to be set up in Eastern Europe and that it would not deploy its missiles if the US dropped its missile shield plans.

Algimantas Fedaravicius, director of the Institute of Defence Technologies, said the new rockets could be put into production.

"We are 100 per cent sure that we can produce these, as is done by Israel, Italy, Germany and France," he told BNS.

Fedaravicius said that though the KTU GTI-1 was a short-range missile, his team was "considering the possibility" of producing a medium-range rocket able to travel further.

"We have the scientists, we have a workshop which enables us to take on ambitious goals, but what's needed here are political and strategic decisions," Fedaravicius said.

Development of the new missile system took just three years and further tests would be conducted in the autumn, he said, adding that military personnel contacted so far were "very interested."

The Institute of Defence Technologies (IDT) was set up in in 2000 to carry out research and experimental design for Lithuanian defence forces. Previous projects have included development of laser rifle simulators and equipment for mines.

Source:

http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/282756,lithuania-tests-new-short-range-missile-system.html

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