U.S. missile shield could split Europe - Chirac

...President Jacques Chirac said on Friday.

The United States wants to base the system in Poland and the Czech Republic so that any missiles fired by what it calls "rogue states" such as Iran and North Korea can be shot down.

"We should be very careful not to head towards new lines of division in Europe and a return to an out-dated order," Chirac told a news conference after a summit of EU leaders in Brussels.

"It raises a number of questions on which we should reflect at length," he added.

The plan has already triggered friction among NATO allies. The Czech Republic has rejected criticism of talks with the United States over its possible participation after Luxembourg said it threatened to cause new tensions with Russia.

An opinion poll last week showed nearly two-thirds of Czechs opposed hosting the radar system.

The centre-right coalition government of Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek is due to respond in coming weeks to the U.S. request to open talks on the system.

It has spoken in favour, but may face problems getting any proposal through parliament.

Britain has voiced an interest in taking part in any U.S. system but other allies are far from sure they want to be involved.

German Defence Minister Franz Josef Jung last week called for talks on a NATO-wide shield but Social Democrat junior partners in Chancellor Angela Merkel's ruling coalition have warned any such move could start a new Cold War with Russia.

Speaking to reporters, Swedish Foreign Minster Carl Bildt played down the risk to EU-Russia ties, saying these were more determined by Russian domestic political interests ahead of elections there next year.

"They are in the beginnings of a succession struggle," he said. "Lots of things we see coming out of Russia should primarily be seen in that context."