That Good Old Cold War Feeling

The Czech and Polish governments are showing an endearing mix of hard-headedness and Ruritanian naïvety in their dealings with the World Cop over the Great Missile Defence Shield boondoggle. The Poles want supplies of Patriot missiles to protect themselves against the Russians (although the Great Missile Defence Shield will be stationed on Russia's doorstep, it will, according to the Pentagon, be aimed harmlessly at Iran, a few miles of Russian airspace away - and Russia has the temerity to feel provoked), while the Czechs want more information about "how a US radar base south of Prague would be safeguarded and what's in it for the Czechs". A Czech official said, with a certain amount of understatement, that "the Americans could have done more to engage the Russians over the past year"; but both the Czech and the Polish governments betray their lack of sophistication by being "frustrated at being taken for granted" (we can imagine what Tony might say to that); by claiming that "it will be difficult to get the agreement of their parliaments" (what's a president for if he can't do the veto thing?); by perceiving Washington's approach as "high-handed" (say it isn't so) and, most amusingly of all, by asking for "legal guarantees". Well, really.