U.S. fails to close gaps with Russia on shield

By Sue Pleming and Kristin Roberts

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States said on Thursday it made some progress in two days of talks with Russia over a disputed U.S. missile shield to deter attacks from states like Iran, but big differences remained.

The latest talks in Washington followed a visit last week to Moscow by U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who offered to give Russians access to U.S.-proposed shield sites in the Czech Republic and Poland as a way of allaying Russian fears over the plan.

"We made a lot of headway ... but there are still significant issues that need to be resolved," Acting U.S. Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security John Rood told reporters at the end of the talks.

Both sides discussed written proposals on missile defense and other key bilateral issues delivered by Rice and Gates at the end of their Moscow trip.

Washington wants to get a so-called strategic framework agreement on key issues between the two countries in time for a summit next month between U.S. President George W. Bush and outgoing Russian President Vladimir Putin, but U.S. officials conceded there was a way to go yet.

Asked whether he thought the strategic framework document, which includes missile defense, would be agreed on before the Putin-Bush summit, senior State Department official Dan Fried told reporters: "I don't know."

"They were not going to give away positions where they had disagreements, but they were not throwing up roadblocks and spinning things out," Fried added.

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