US, Czech delay signing missile deal

The signing of a treaty on the deployment of a US missile shield near Prague has been delayed as Czech citizens continue their protest.

Negotiators had been unable to set a date for the official signing, said Czech Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zuzana Opletalova on Monday.

"We have tried for May 5, but we did not succeed,'' she added without elaborating.

This came amid the announcement of the US embassy in Prague three weeks ago that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice would travel to the Czech capital in early May to sign the treaty.

Later on Monday, Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek said the deal could be signed in early June together with a secondary treaty that deals with issues including taxes and the legal status of US soldiers to be deployed to the Czech territory.

Both treaties will need parliamentary approval and negotiations on the second, "complementary'' treaty have not been concluded yet.

The proposed US missile defense system calls for a tracking radar in the Czech Republic and 10intercepotors missile in Poland. More