A Senior State Department official has warned that the US will deploy a missile defense system, now or a few years later, regardless of vehement opposition from Russia, China, and Europe. The official (speaking on condition of anonymity) noted that no amount of protest was going to change the fact that rogue nations are building missiles that can, in a few years, reach the continental US. "This project isn't going to go away" the official warned. Even if President Clinton decides not to go ahead with deployment, the next president certainly will as the threat continues to develop.--Stephen V Cole