Rice to ink missile defense deal this week in Prague

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice travels to Europe on Monday to sign a missile defense agreement in Prague and will make stops in Sofia and Tbilisi, the State Department said on Sunday.

State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said Rice will meet with senior Czech, Bulgarian and Georgian officials on a wide range of bilateral and transatlantic issues during the four-day trip.

In Prague, Rice will sign an agreement for stationing a U.S. missile defense radar on Czech soil, McCormack said in a statement.

The United States wants to install the tracking radar in the Czech Republic and interceptor rockets in Poland to shield itself and its allies from attack by what it calls "rogue" states, including Iran.

U.S. officials have said privately Rice would likely add a stop in Warsaw if an agreement with Polish authorities can be finalized in time.

Russia opposes the missile defense shield system, arguing that it could someday be expanded to neutralize its nuclear deterrent.

Rice's visit to the Georgian capital follows months of escalating tensions between Tbilisi and Georgia's breakaway region Abkhazia. The United States in June expressed dismay after Russia sent more troops to the region without the consent of the Georgian government.

Russia provides financial aid and has peacekeepers in the region. Georgia, an aspiring NATO member, accuses Moscow of trying to annex the impoverished Black Sea region.

During her visit to Sofia, Rice will receive Bulgaria's highest award for her role in obtaining the release last July of Bulgarian medics and a Palestinian doctor held in Libya, the State Department said.

(Reporting by JoAnne Allen; editing by Todd Eastham)