Sri Lanka, July 15 -- A European coalition to develop a common shield against ballistic missiles . This is the initiative launched today in Paris, during the meeting of the Coalition of the Willing, by the leaders of Italy, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Ukraine, and the United Kingdom, who signed ajoint Declaration to initiate the creation of a Coalition for Anti-Ballistic Missile Defense.

The goal, the statement states, is to rapidly develop a "purely defensive" European defense capability through the creation of an "integrated missile defense architecture" capable of "deterring and neutralising future missile threats." The project will complement and integrate national systems already in service or u...