"We insist on only one thing," he said of the nascent US-backed missile defence shield. "That we are an equal part of it."
"In practical terms, that means that our office will sit for example in Brussels and agree on a red-button push to launch an interceptor missile, regardless of whether the missile is launched from Poland, Russia or the UK."
Russia has been pushing hard for a prominent role in the new missile shield for months but with little noticeable success as Washington and its allies remain deeply sceptical of Russia's reliability as a political and military partner.
The proper response to Russia's demand is "take a hike." Lord knows what our State Department will agree to.
