Revising Missile Defense Shield Scheme and Its Impact on Russia-U.S. Relations

The U.S. missile defense shield scheme is one of the most strategic topics in the field of international security. Developments related to it and the extension of its domain to the Western borders of Russia after 2007 have overshadowed relations between the United States and Russia. Given the above situation, this article tries to answer some key questions: first, what are the motives and reasons of the deployment of this system in Eastern Europe, what changes have been occurred during the last decade regarding this scheme, how the views and behavior of Russia and the U.S. in this regard can be evaluated and finally which policies justifies the actions made by the two countries in the present and future conditions? In response to these questions, the authors indicate that sensitivities regarding this subject could be analyzed by adopting an attitude based on strategic concerns and international security considerations. Therefore, with the alssumption that the deployment of missile defense system in Europe is intended to reduce Russias strategic capabilities and to constrain its maneuvering power, it seems that the rivalry between the U.S. and Russia in the geostrategic region of Eastern and Central Europe can be explained by the models based on balance of power and deterring threats. Also given some new incentives such as Ukraine crisis and increasing differences between the two countries, this article tries to explore the factors causing concerns in both countries based on a descriptive-analytical method while studying the background and different dimensions of this scheme as well as Russias missile and defense capabilities.