Subject: {new_subj}

From: "Patrica Walden" <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 13 Nov 2007 07:46:10 -0800

">U.S. officials said Russia had the right to withdraw from the treaty but expressed skepticism that the bilateral agreement could be extended to other countries, which have their own defense needs.The first explosion reportedly struck a house but no injuries were reported, while the second and third explosions "caused more damage to several houses and the casualties," the military said.Despite U.S. pledges of cooperation and new ideas on missile defense, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Defense Secretary Robert Gates were warned by President Vladimir Putin to back off on missile defense plans for the former Soviet sphere.The U.S. military already had been considering alternatives to Turkey because of the growing dependence on that country after the cutback of U.S. forces in central Asia in recent years.Turkey has threatened such action after congressional moves to declare that the killing of Armenians by Ottoman Turks in World War I was "genocide."All seven soldiers were serving under the Fort Hood, Texas-based 15th Sustainment Brigade as part of the 1st Cavalry Division.The U.S. military estimated Thursday that 15 civilians were killed by coalition forces in the operation targeting senior leaders of al Qaeda in Iraq. The military said the terrorist group put the victims in harm's way.The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe diplomatic discussions, maintained that differences were narrowed but progress was incremental and might not produce ultimate understandings.The Pentagon plans to install 10 missile interceptors in Poland, linked to a missile tracking radar in the Czech Republic. The Pentagon says the system will provide some protection in Europe and beyond for long-range missiles launched from Iran, but Russia believes the system is a step toward undermining the deterrent value of its nuclear arsenal.U.S. forces have searched the affected area and are trying to track down the suspects, the military said.Serdyukov agreed.In a series of meetings Friday, Rice and Gates failed to turn around Moscow's opposition to the system and other strategic arms issues and got little more than a pledge to meet again.Meanwhile, two U.S. soldiers were killed and five others were wounded in a mortar attack launched "in the vicinity of Baghdad" on Wednesday, the U.S. military said Saturday. The deaths put the total number of U.S. military personnel killed in the Iraq war at 3,827.The wounded troops were transported to a military medical facility for "emergency treatment and further evaluation," the military said, adding the incident is under investigation.Turkey -- now a NATO member and a key U.S. ally in the war on terror -- accepts Armenians were killed but calls it a massacre during a chaotic time, not an organized campaign of genocide.U.S. military planners quietly have stepped up a review of alternatives in case the Turkish government restricts U.S. access to Turkish airspace or cuts off access to the air base at Incirlik, Turkey, CNN has learned.