Berlin, JUNE 8, SPA -- Russia's surprise offer to the United States tocooperate on an alternative missile defence shield is "a constructivesignal," DPA QUOTED a German Foreign Ministry spokesman as saying Friday. "We view this as a positive, a constructive signal in the dialoguethat could lead to an easing of tension," said Foreign Ministryspokesman Jens Ploetner. President Vladimir Putin made the suggestion to US PresidentGeorge W Bush at a private meeting on the fringe of the G8 summit ofleading industrial nations in the German resort of Heiligendamm. The Russian leader has been critical of Washington's plans todeploy the anti-ballistic missile shield in Poland and the CzechRepublic, saying it posed a threat to Russia's security. On Thursday, he proposed a joint scheme under which part of thesystem be based at a radar station in the former Soviet republic ofAfghanistan. Bush described the proposal as "interesting" and said the twosides had formed a working group of experts to see how they couldcooperate on missile defence. Ploetner cautioned against making hasty judgements on the proposaluntil it had been examined thoroughly by the US side. The US plans to install a radar-tracking station in the CzechRepublic and 10 interceptor missiles in Poland to counter what itsees as a potential threat from rogue states like Iran. Poland and the Czech Republic are former Soviet satellites, butare now members of the European Union and NATO. The controversial US plan will figure in a meeting between Bushand Polish President Lech Kaczynski when the US leader travels toPoland after the end of the G8 summit later Friday.--SPA www.spa.gov.sa/457028