Prague - A senior US defence official said Friday that plans for placing a US missile defence system in Europe would not slow down even if Czech lawmakers postpone their final decision on the project until after a new US president takes office.

"This threat is going to continue to emerge. That is going to cause the next president, whoever that may be, to have to address that," said US Missile Defence Agency's head, General Henry Obering.

Warsaw - General Henry Obering said the United States wants an anti-missile base in Poland by 2012, and would ratify the deal even this year, Polish local media reported on Wednesday.

Obering, who is director of the US Missile Defence Agency, was visiting northern Poland on Wednesday to tour the future site of the missile base and meet with local officials. He said the 400-million dollar investment would boost the region's economy.

Polish vice-minister of Defence Stanislaw Jerzy Komorowski said that Poland also wants a quick ratification of the deal, reported the Polish Press Agency, but had doubts it could be done by the end of 2008.