MOSCOW -

The presidents of Russia and the United States agreed Thursday to cooperate on missile defense issues, and Vladimir Putin offered the U.S. joint use of the Gabala radar installation in Azerbaijan in an apparent attempt to ease tensions sparked by Washington's missile shield plans.

"The U.S. response to the Russian proposal will reveal whether the Americans are really concerned about the threats coming from certain global regions, which are common for both Russia and the United States," said Konstantin Kosachev, chairman of the International Affairs Committee at the lower house of the Russian parliament.

The meeting in Germany's Baltic resort of Heiligendamm was the leaders' first since Washington announced earlier this year that it was expanding its missile shield to sites in the Czech Republic and Poland, allegedly to counter a potential threat from Iran and North Korea.

The Kremlin initially responded angrily to the U.S. plans, citing threats to national security, and warned that U.S. missile bases in Europe could become targets of Russian pinpoint strikes.

The bilateral discussions on the sidelines of a G8 summit lasted around one hour, and also involved White House National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley. After the talks, Bush did not give a specific response to Putin's proposal, but said his Russian counterpart had made some "interesting suggestions." However, Hadley went a step further, saying Washington was willing to study the offer.

"If the Americans reject Russia's offer under a certain pretext, we will know for sure that their true goal is not only to stave off a potential threat from Iran or North Korea, but also to neutralize Russia's nuclear potential, which we could have assumed earlier," Kosachev said.

The Gabala radar station, which Russia leases from Azerbaijan, is the most powerful in the region. It has a range of about 6,000 kilometers (3,700 miles) and enables Russia's Space Forces to monitor launches of intercontinental ballistic and other missiles in Asia and parts of Africa.

Russia's First Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Belousov said Friday the Gabala radar was capable of detecting all launches of ballistic missiles from the southern direction.

"Why build something new, for instance, in the Czech Republic or Poland, if we already have everything," Belousov said, referring to the radar capabilities in Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan's foreign minister reiterated Friday the Caucasus state was ready to start talks with Russia and the United States on the joint use of its Gabala radar station.

"Russia has approached us with an initiative to use the radar along with the U.S.," Elmar Mamedyarov said. "Azerbaijan is prepared to start consultations in a bilateral and three-party format."

The radar was leased to Russia for 10 years in 2002. It is an early warning system capable of tracing ballistic missiles and other flying objects with high accuracy. The station, Russia's only military facility in Azerbaijan, plays a significant role in the Russian air defense system.

Kosachev said that if the U.S. accepted Russia's proposal, it would mark the beginning of a new kind of partnership between Moscow and Washington because "for the first time some elements of the Russian and U.S. missile defenses would be integrated, leading to cooperation in response to mutual threats, rather than rivalry.

Vladimir Putin reiterated Friday at a news conference following the G8 summit in Germany that the U.S. missile defense plans are directed against a nonexistent threat, and would undermine Russia's national security.

The previous day, at talks with his U.S. counterpart George W. Bush, Putin offered the Pentagon to use the Soviet-built Gabala radar in Azerbaijan to detect missile launches. Bush did not directly respond to the offer, but a senior White House advisor said the U.S. would consider it.

President Putin said that if Washington agrees, Russia will not be forced to deploy its own missiles in its European exclave of Kaliningrad, or move its missiles closer to Russia's western borders.

Despite repeated U.S. assurances that the Central European missile shield would be directed against unpredictable states such as Iran and North Korea, the president said Moscow is convinced that the plans "undermine the security of Russia and its citizens."

"My Gabala offer for our American partners is much broader than to build a radar there. The main point is that we do not actually need to build anything. Everything was built in Soviet times," he said. "We can upgrade it if necessary, and share all necessary data in real-time mode."

If accepted, Russia's radar solution would automatically help resolve the issue, Putin said.

"In this case, there will be no need for our partners to place offensive weapons in outer space - which in itself is a real threat to international security - or build a new radar in the Czech Republic, or deploy missiles in Poland," he said. "[Interceptor missiles] can be placed on floating platforms, on warships, or in southern countries, including U.S. NATO allies."

Putin specified that if the U.S. agrees to the Russian offer, "there would be no necessity of pointing our missiles at any sites in Europe or in the United States."

The president reiterated that an Iranian missile threat will be out of the question for years to come, and called for a multilateral meeting to assess missile threats that could confront Europe up to 2020.

Acknowledging that consultations and negotiations will take some time, Putin said equal access to such a new system was crucial, and added he hoped no hasty unilateral moves would be made until the process is complete.

"Iran does not have such missiles today. If Iran starts developing them, we will find out immediately. Even if we fail to find it out, we will learn about it as soon as the first tests begin," he said.

Putin dismissed any possibility that a radar as close to Iran's borders as Azerbaijan would damage relations with Tehran.

"I don't think it will harm our relations with Iran because this radar has been operational for quite some time," he said.

The Gabala radar, located near the town of Minchegaur, 120 km (75 miles) from the capital Baku, was leased to Russia for 10 years in 2002.

The radar has been operational since early 1985. With a range of 6,000 kilometers (3,700 miles), it is the most powerful in the region and detects launches of any missiles from Asia, Middle East and parts of Africa. Under current agreements, the radar, Russia's only military facility in Azerbaijan, cannot be put into full combat mode without Baku's prior consent. Its status has been the source of environmental and other tensions in recent years.