Assemblywoman Addie Jenne Russell, D-Theresa, is urging federal officials to site a missile defense operation less than 100 miles from St. Lawrence County at Fort Drum.

The Missile Defense Agency is considering Fort Drum, a training center in Michigan and a training center in Ohio as the location for a potential new missile defense site in the United States.

Assemblywoman Russell, in a letter to the Missile Defense Agency, said Fort Drum is well suited to add the military defense site to its arsenal.

"Fort Drum and the surrounding communities are uniquely capable of meeting the needs of the project and the personnel needed to support the system," she wrote.

"We are accustomed to the security needs of the installation and quality standards in regard to construction projects, as well as have the capacity to ensure timely completion of the build out," according to Assemblywoman Russell.

"We have proven ourselves capable of addressing housing needs based upon personnel preference and boast a collaborative model between the military and civilian community to provide for health care services and public school education that allows for scaling up or down depending on the size of the force and their dependents living on the installation and in nearby communities," she said.

Assemblywoman Russell said the collaborative model offers efficiencies that drive down the costs of overhead for programs of all sizes.

She added the support of the region's leaders goes far beyond the jobs and economic activity the missile defense site project would bring to the North Country.

"We are a community that understands the challenges of providing for our domestic and foreign security. We understand the critical role that our military personnel play in our safety, and the sacrifices of their families," Assemblywoman Russell wrote.

"We have a duty to our men and women in uniform, as well as their families, to make their time at Fort Drum as seamless and positive an experience as possible and to support their unique needs and enhance their ability to be resilient in an ever changing mission environment," she added.

"This is a responsibility we take very seriously and I feel we are unmatched in the entire military in our dedication and track record on this matter. We will rise to the needs of the mission of all those that call Fort Drum home," Assemblywoman Russell said.