The head of the United States Missile Defense Agency (MDA) will Tuesday inaugurate a global conference on missile defence in Prague, the US embassy said.

Henry Obering's visit will coincide with that of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who is scheduled to sign an accord finalising the setting up of a radar base on Czech soil as part of a greater US missile shield.

The fifth International Conference on Missile Defence -- under the theme "Missile defence: challenges in Europe" -- will run through to Thursday and is organised by the French Aeronautic Association.

Industrial defense contractors such as Raytheon, Lockheed Martin and Boeing of the United States and French firms Thales and Snecma are attending.

Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek is expected to outline his position on the anti-missile shield which has angered Russia and is the subject of ongoing negotiations between the US and Poland.

The US wants to base a radar facility in the Czech Republic and 10 interceptor missiles in neighbouring Poland by 2011-13 to ward off potential attacks by so-called "rogue" states, notably Iran.

Russia is hostile to the idea of having the US missile shield on its doorstep and in its communist-era sphere of influence -- both Poland and the Czech Republic were Soviet satellite states until 1989.

But the Kremlin has softened its line in recent months and appears to be focusing on getting security guarantees.

NATO, which both Poland and the Czech Republic joined in 1999, endorsed the US plan at a summit in April.

Obering on Thursday is scheduled to go to the military zone southwest of Prague where the installation will be brought to from the Pacific Marshall Islands and updated by Raytheon, the US embassy and MDA said.