Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, recently surprised George W. Bush, his US counterpart, by proposing co-operation on missile defence. While Washington welcomed the move, experts question whether both sides can find common ground.

The US wants to place 10 missile interceptors in Poland and a powerful radar in the Czech Republic to protect the US and Europe from Iranian missile threats. Moscow argues that the shield appears to be aimed at Russia, since Iran is years away from developing missiles that could target the US.

At the recent summit of the Group of Eight rich nations, however, Mr Putin replaced months of cold war style rhetoric with an offer to share data from a Russian early warning radar located in Gabala, Azerbaijan. He also suggested that the Pentagon place the interceptors in Turkey, Iraq, or on ships...

Few experts are convinced, however, that the US and Russia will be able to co-operate in a significant way. Jeffrey Lewis, a missile defence expert at the New America Foundation who writes the ArmsControlWonk blog, says he is pessimistic because both sides have missed opportunities to co-operate in the past...

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