NewsTracker Answers for week of Aug. 25, 2008

Q: The United States and Poland signed an agreement last week on an anti-missile system. Where in the world is Poland?

Circle the area on this map

Q: U.S. officials say the 10 rockets in Poland would help protect the U.S. and Europe against missiles from "rogue" states such as ...

A. Iraq

B. Iran

C. Russia

D. China

B. The U.S. has cited Iran as a potential threat, but Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the missile system was "defensive and aimed at no-one."

Q: Which nation warned that the base on Polish soil could become a target for a nuclear attack?

A. Iran

B. Germany

C. Russia

D. China

C. The Russian foreign ministry said the planned missile shield was aimed at weakening Moscow, describing it as part of "U.S. efforts to change the strategic balance of power in its favor."

Q: Poland and the United States now are both members of the NATO alliance. What was NATO's rival alliance during the Cold War?

A. The Axis

B. Communist Compact

C. United Nations

D. Warsaw Pact

D. The pact, named after Poland's capital where it was signed, was an alliance of the former Soviet Union and the Central and Eastern European nations it dominated in the aftermath of World War II.

Q: Which nations invaded Poland at the start of World War II?

A. Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia

B. Soviet Union and Germany

C. Germany and Italy

D. Britain and France

B. World War II started Sept. 1, 1939, when Nazi Germany invaded Poland. The Soviets invaded 16 days later, and the invaders split the country between them as they agreed in the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact.