The Czech Republic has formally approved a deal to allow the U.S. to place parts of a missile defense system on Czech territory, officials said Wednesday.

Government spokeswoman Jana Bartosova said the government gave its approval during a meeting in the northern town of Teplice.

The Czech Republic and the U.S. announced in April that negotiations on the main bilateral treaty had succeeded.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is expected in Prague to sign the treaty within the next two months, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zuzana Opletalova said Wednesday.

The Czech-U.S. missile defense agreement is based on two treaties, both of which will need parliamentary approval.

Negotiations on the second, "complementary" treaty, which deals with issues including taxes and the legal status of U.S. soldiers to be deployed at the planned radar base near Prague have not been concluded yet.

The proposed U.S. missile defense system calls for a tracking radar in the Czech Republic and 10 interceptor missiles in Poland as part of a shield designed to protect the region from possible attacks from Iran. The U.S. has yet to reach an agreement with Poland.

NATO leaders agreed to endorse the U.S. plan last month at a summit in Bucharest, Romania, despite Russia's objections.