U.S. says will give no missile defense assurances to Russia

The U.S. State Department’s top arms control official has said the Obama administration will not give Russia any legally binding guarantees that U.S. missile defenses in Europe will not impact Russia’s strategic deterrent, Foreign Policy magazine reported.

“We will never do a legally binding agreement because I can’t do one. I can’t get anything ratified. Even if I wanted to I’m not sure I would… ’Legally binding’ doesn’t mean what it did before,” Under Secretary of State for Arms Control Ellen Tauscher said during a meeting of the Defense Writers Group on Thursday.

“What they (Russia) are looking for really is a sense that future administrations are going to live by [Obama's commitments]. And you can’t really do that,” she said.

Read more