Obama adviser says some Russian missile defense objections are reasonable

Obama adviser backs off Bush missile defense line

WASHINGTON — A senior adviser to U.S. President Barack Obama says that Russia has some reasonable concerns about U.S. missile defense plans.

Russia has strongly opposed U.S. missile defense plans in Europe. Moscow says the system could undermine the deterrent of its vast nuclear arsenal.

The Bush administration dismissed those concerns. It said that the system was aimed at countering Iran and that its capabilities were too limited to pose a threat to Moscow.

However, Obama’s coordinator for weapons of mass destruction policy, Gary Samore on Friday said that Russia’s objections are legitimate as Washington and Moscow pursue nuclear reductions.