U.S. missile base in Poland...Russian opposition

Reuters and others said U.S. missile air defenses are operating in northern Poland, about 160 kilometers from Russian territory.

Poland's Ministry of Defense held the opening ceremony of the U.S. missile intercept system "Eazis Ashore" base in the northern city of Regikovo on the afternoon of the 13th local time.

The Aegis Ashore is a transfer of Aegis destroyer air defense systems to the ground, and the Polish Regikovo base consists of AN/SPY-1 radar, SM-3 interceptor missiles, and Mk41 vertical launchers.

The base is a U.S. Navy facility under the U.S. military European Command, located about 160 kilometers from the border of Kaliningrad, an offshore Russian territory.

The U.S. military has also been operating Aegis Ashore in Romania since 2016 under the European Missile Defense Integration Plan, called the "European Stages Flexible Access Strategy" (EPAA).

Poland agreed to build a missile base in 2008 during the George W. Bush administration.Polish Foreign Minister

Radoslaw Sikorsky said the base "shows the geopolitical consistency of the United States" and stressed that the alliance between the United States and Poland is strong, regardless of who is in power in both countries.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov warned that "the U.S. military infrastructure in Europe is moving forward toward our border" and that "appropriate measures will be adopted to ensure equality."

Russia has viewed the base as a threat to the country from the planning stage.

The West was originally designed to intercept missiles flying from the Middle East, including Iran, and says it is purely for defense.

Poland, however, has made no secret of its intention to use the air defenses in its military response to Russia.

Poland's Defense Minister Vwadysław Kosiniakkamish said he would discuss with NATO and the U.S. to expand the scope of the defense.

"The world will see clearly that this is no longer Russia's sphere of influence," President Andrzej Duda said at the opening ceremony.