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China Quiet on SLBM Test Details

China is keeping quiet on its recent ship-launched ballistic missile test, reports the Press Trust of India. According to reports, the People’s Liberation Army Navy successfully test-fired its new JL-2 SLBM from a nuclear submarine in the Pacific Ocean on June 16. When asked to confirm the reports of the test, however, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao refused to comment, stating only that “China has made some efforts in the field of stepping up its national defense.” (Article, Link) 

» June 22, 2005: The Washington Times: Bill Gertz on JL-2 launch

» More stories on: China, Testing - Foreign

» Missile details: CSS-NX-5 (JL-2)

Taiwan to Get BMD Radar

The U.S. Air Force will provide Taiwan with the Early Warning Surveillance Radar, reports Reuters. The high-tech system will allow Taiwan to detect and track long- and short-range ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, surface ships, and enemy aircraft. Once completed, it will be integrated with missile warning centers, and potentially the Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) anti-missile system, which the United States has offered to sell Taiwan. The Early Warning Surveillance Radar will cost approximately $752 million, and is scheduled for delivery to Taiwan in September 2009. (Article, Link) 

» More stories on: Allies, Taiwan

» Missile system details for: Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3)

Japan Suspects North Korea-Iran Link

Japan is worried that Iran has leaked high-tech cruise missile technology to North Korea, reports the Japanese daily Sankei Shimbun. At issue is a shipment of Kh-55 cruise missiles that Iran received from the Ukraine in 2001. The Kh-55, which was developed in the late 1970s in the former Soviet Union, has a range of 3,000 km (1,864 miles), enough to threaten all of Japan if deployed by North Korea. Japan is concerned that Iran has transferred the technology to North Korea, which might be able to arm the Kh-55 missiles with nuclear warheads. Sankei Shimbun quotes a Japanese Defense Ministry source as saying about Iran and North Korea, “They are linked by a network beneath the surface regarding the development of weapons of mass destruction.” (Article, Link) 

» More stories on: Cruise Missile Defenses, Iran, North Korea, Proliferation

India, U.S. Sign Ten Year Defense Agreement

The U.S. and India have signed a 10-year defense agreement paving the way for joint weapons production and cooperation on missile defense. The June 28 statement signed by U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and his Indian counterpart, Pranab Mukherjee, calls for “an enhanced level of cooperation covering military to military relations as well as a defense industrial and technological relationship.” The two nations have agreed to set up a defense procurement and production group to oversee defense trade, co-production and technology collaboration, and research, development, testing and evaluation.
        Most analysts view the June 28 initiative as part of Washington’s larger strategy to counter the growing influence of China, India’s immediate neighbor. (Article, Link) 

» More stories on: Allies, India

Congressman Bartlett on EMP Threat

Rep. Roscoe Bartlett (R-MD) joins the many Congressmen recently warning that the U.S. is vulnerable to an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) attack, reports Joseph Farrah’s G2 Bulletin. An EMP attack is generated when a nuclear weapon is detonated several dozen kilometers above the Earth’s surface, producing a large electromagnetic pulse. Such an attack would destroy a nation’s entire electric power infrastructure, resulting in cascading failures in energy, telecommunications, transportation, finance, food, and water. Bartlett warns that such an attack is imminently possible: “Terrorists could steal, purchase, or be provided a nuclear weapon and perform an EMP attack against the United States simply by launching a primitive Scud missile off a freighter near our shores.” He points out that Iran recently test-launched a Scud missile from a surface vessel, and also that North Korea could develop an EMP weapon in the near future. Bartlett correctly argues that the U.S. must act quickly to harden the nation’s infrastructure to withstand such an attack.
        Another critical step must be taken: The U.S. must build and maintain a robust missile defense shield capable of protecting the homeland. Such a defense—which would incorporate defensive systems based on air, land, sea, and space—would cause a rogue nation or terrorist-sponsoring state to think twice before launching such an attack. Until then, the U.S. will remain vulnerable. (Article, Link) 

» More stories on: Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP) Weapons

Prototype High Altitude Airship Proceeding

The Pentagon has decided to build and demonstrate a prototype of its High Altitude Airship (HAA), reports Defense Daily. As envisioned, the HAA is a 500-foot-long, unmanned, radar-carrying surveillance blimp designed to detect and track incoming ballistic missiles as they approach U.S. coastal regions. The blimp would hover above the jet stream at an altitude of 20 km for months at a time. In particular, it would have the ability to detect low-flying missiles that could slip underneath ground-based radars. A flight test of the prototype HAA is proposed for FY 2008. (Link) 

» More stories on: Air

» Missile system details for: High Altitude Airship (Blimp)

U.S. Asks Japan for $545 Million

The U.S. has asked Japan to contribute $545 million to the joint Aegis sea-based missile defense system, reports the AFP. The U.S. intends to contribute an equal amount to the project. Some reports indicate, however, that Tokyo finds this sum too high and plans to ask for a reduction in cost. The AFP notes that Japan is attempting to cut its defense spending amid mixed signals on the direction of its economy. (Link) 

» More stories on: Allies, Japan

» Missile system details for: Aegis Ship-Based BMD

China Tests JL-2 SLBM

China on Thursday, June 16, test-fired a new long-range ballistic missile from a nuclear submarine in the Pacific Ocean according to a report by The Daily Yomiuri. The missile traveled from a submarine located near the city of Qingdao which is located in the Shandong Peninsula, some several thousand miles toward a western Chinese desert. Japanese government sources were quoted as saying that the missile tested was the Ju Lang 2 (JL-2), a sea-launched modified version of the Dong Feng-31 ICBM with a range of roughly 8,000 kilometers. China tested another sea launched ballistic missile in 2001.
        The Washington Times quotes “a U.S. official familiar with reports of the test” as calling China’s test “a significant milestone in their effort to develop strategic weapons.” The Air Force’s National Air Intelligence Center is also quoted as reporting that the JL-2 missile “will, for the first time, allow Chinese [missile submarines] to target portions of the United States from operating areas located near the Chinese coast.”  (Article, Link) 

» June 22, 2005: The Washington Times: Bill Gertz on JL-2 launch

» More stories on: China, Testing - Foreign

» Missile details: CSS-NX-5 (JL-2)

Dinerman: Why Not Fight Wars in Space?

Taylor Dinerman has another fine article on the subject of the weaponization of space in The Space Review. Besides recalling the physical principles and strategic facts which make space a useful base of operations, and the fact that America is already very dependent upon vulnerable space-based satellites, Dinerman also addresses the charged politics behind those so violently opposed to the use of space for the defense of America. A brief excerpt:

The nature of space technology, and of space itself, as the ultimate high ground, means that there will be weapons, and future battles, outside Earth’s atmosphere. No matter what actually happens, it is almost certain that some will find a way to blame America. Therefore, any decision regarding the building of any space warfare system should be made strictly on the basis of military utility. Since no argument or foreign threat will likely change the minds of those who are against space weaponization, any change in US space policy, no matter how mild or hedged with caveats, will be portrayed as opening the doors of hell. Rather, under current circumstances, President Bush should authorize the pursuit of more and better space assets, including weapons, and Donald Rumsfeld should be pushing the Air Force to radically improve the way it designs and builds all its space systems.

After all, why not fight wars in space? There’s lots of room there and not a lot of civilians to get in the way.

 (Article, Link) 

» More stories on: Analysis, Space-Based Systems

U.S. to Discuss BMD Sales to India

Stephen Rademaker, U.S. assistant secretary of state for arms control, told reporters on Thursday that the U.S. is willing to discuss supplying missile defense systems to India. The AFP quotes Rademaker, speaking from New Delhi, as saying, “We are willing to talk to India about missile defense. Missile defense is very expensive. So, it is not something that India will enter into lightly.” He urged New Delhi to spell out regulatory mechanisms for controlling exports of sensitive technologies. Rademaker’s comments coincide with reports that the U.S. has agreed to sell to India the Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) system.
        On June 15 The Indian Express reported that the U.S. has already cleared the sale of PAC-3 anti-missile interceptors. The decision came on the eve of Indian Defense Minister Pranab Mukherjee’s visit to the U.S. this month, and represents a significant step toward closer military relations between the two countries. The PAC-3, unlike previous models, relies on hit-to-kill technology to eliminate short- and medium-range missiles. (Article, Link) 

» June 15, 2005: The Indian Express on PAC-3 sales to India

» More stories on: Allies, India

» Missile system details for: Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3)

More on NATO-Russia TMD Continuing Cooperation

Russia and NATO continue to cooperate on short range, or “theater” ballistic missile defense, reports RIA-Novosti. Both sides will take part in a seminar on nuclear strategy doctrines in July 2005, followed by a nuclear emergency exercise in the UK in September, and then joint command-and-staff exercises in Russia in 2006. Speaking in Brussels at the Russia-NATO Council on June 9, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov stressed the need to boost cooperation, particularly in the area of cruise missile defense. (Article, Link) 

» More stories on: Cruise Missile Defenses, Russia

Israel to Receive First U.S.-Produced Arrow Interceptors

The Israeli Air Force will receive the first Arrow missile interceptors made with U.S. parts this month, reports Bloomberg. Since 2000, Israel Aircraft Industries has worked with Boeing to co-produce missile canisters, motor housings, electronics, and radar caps. Arieh Herzog, director of the Israel Missile Defense Organization, stated that the collaboration will allow Israel to double its original rate of production. The U.S. has helped fund the Arrow program since the late 1980s in order to protect Israel from missile attack. (Link) 

» More stories on: Israel

» Missile system details for: Arrow

Russia to Phase Out Railcar Missiles by December 2005

RIA-Novosti reports that Russia plans to remove all nuclear missile trains from combat duty by December 2005. According to one source quoted in the article, “Unfortunately missiles grow old, just like people, and their guaranteed service life runs out.” Each system comprises three launchers of SS-24 Scalpel (RT-23U Molodets) missiles. Previous reports indicate that Russia most recently dismantled missile trains at Kostroma and Bryansk. (Article, Link) 

» More stories on: Russia

» Missile details: SS-N-4

Microwave Technology to be Adapted for Airline Defense

Raytheon has developed a high-powered microwave beam to defend airliners against shoulder-launched missiles, reports the Associated Press. The system, known as “Vigilant Eagle,” uses infrared sensors to create a protective dome around an airport. In the event of a surface-to-air missile launch, a microwave gun (roughly the size of a billboard) blasts the missile with a high-energy beam, confusing its guidance system and knocking it off track. Raytheon estimates that if the U.S. deployed “Vigilant Eagle” at the 30 busiest domestic airports (at a cost of $25 million per airport), it would protect 70 percent of inbound and outbound flights.
        Although the sort of missile defense involved here (anti-anti-aircraft missiles) is of a very different sort than that concerning ballistic missiles, the development of high energy technology could conceivably be transferable. (Article, Link) 

» More stories on: High Energy Defenses

Army Laser Weapon Proceeding

The U.S. Army is developing a vehicle-mounted laser defense system, reports Jane’s Defense Weekly. According to the report, contractors have developed a concept vehicle known as TALON, which will use a 100 kW solid-state laser to shoot down rockets, mortars, and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The laser would be mounted on a manned ground vehicle, and both will be powered by a hybrid electric motor. (Article, Link) 

» More stories on: High Energy Defenses

Oberg on a Sober Approach to Space

Recent newspaper stories have sparked a flurry of warnings that United States efforts to protect its assets in space, upon which our military has come to be extremely dependent, will provoke an “arms race,” and countries which are ordinarily described as no match for American might are endowed with superpower capabilities, from which they refrain only so long as America will not cross the Rubicon of “weaponizing” space.
        James Oberg writes in USA Today on the seemingly contagious hyperventilation about this heated issue, from a somewhat different perspective. Oberg suggests that the arms controllers who so virulently denounce research for space-based systems could actually be helping to provoke the sort of response by Russia and others of which they warn—a sort of self-fulfilling prophecy. Oberg’s article is a fine one. It does not, however, address the separate issue of whether America should be taking steps to protect its assets in space, and moreover to use the advantages of such strategic high ground to protect its homeland, allies, and troops on the Earth’s surface.
        Without specifying any systems, Oberg claims that space has already been weaponized, off and on, but mainly by other countries:

Weapons have occasionally been deployed in space for decades, without sparking mass arms races or hair-trigger tensions. These are not just systems that send warheads through space, such as intercontinental missiles or the proposed global bomber. These are systems that put the weapons into stable orbits, circling Earth, based in space. And these systems were all Russian ones, by the way, most of them predating President Reagan’s “Strategic Defense Initiative” to develop an anti-missile system.

        An extended excerpt:  (More »»») 

» More stories on: Space-Based Systems

Independent Review Team Report

An independent panel chartered by the Pentagon has concluded that the “rush to deploy” a national missile defense system at Fort Greely, Alaska, led to shortfalls in quality controls and engineering procedures, reports The Washington Post. Although the report contains no mention of any fundamental flaws in the system’s design, it argues that recent flight-test failures stemmed from the Pentagon’s preoccupation with deadlines. According to the panel, the “rush to deploy” resulted in insufficient ground tests, a lack of specifications and standards, and a tendency to postpone the resolution of bothersome issues. The panel’s recommendation is that the Pentagon “reorient the program” to place greater emphasis on verification and reliability, thus making successful testing “the primary objective.” In the future, the program should “be event-driven rather than schedule-driven.”
        The panel’s conclusions notwithstanding, it is important to remember the Bush administration’s justification for deploying these interceptors: to defend the U.S. against a potential missile attack by North Korea. In recent years, North Korea has acquired the capability to launch long-range missiles at the U.S., which could be armed with nuclear, chemical, or biological warheads. Faced with this threat, the Bush administration was correct to pursue a limited missile defense, rather than leave the U.S. completely vulnerable to attack.  (Article, Link) 

» More stories on: Analysis, North Korea

Gertz on Chinese Buildup

A highly classified report concludes that U.S. intelligence agencies failed to recognize key military developments in China over the past decade, reports Bill Gertz in The Washington Times. The report was created by current and former intelligence officials, and describes U.S. failures to anticipate or discover such developments as: a new long-range cruise missile; new surface-to-surface missiles for targeting U.S. aircraft carrier battle groups; new air-to-ground missiles with more accurate warheads; and a new warship equipped with a stolen Chinese version of the U.S. Aegis battle management system. According to the Times, the study was produced by the intelligence contractor Centra Technologies. Its main author was Robert Suettinger, a National Security Council staff member for China during the Clinton administration and the U.S. intelligence community’s top China analyst until 1998. (Article, Link) 

» More stories on: China

Goldfarb on “Rods From God” Space Weapons

Michael Goldfarb, writing in The Weekly Standard, explains the concept of kinetic-energy space-based weapons otherwise known as “Rods from God”—a possible defense against underground, hardened missile facilities, such as those deployed by Iran. “Rods from God” would consist of two satellites: one serving as a communications platform, the other carrying an arsenal of tungsten rods, each roughly 7.0 m long and 0.3 m in diameter. The rods, when dropped from space, would enter the Earth’s atmosphere at approximately 11,000 m/s, about as fast as a meteor. This weapon would rely on kinetic energy, rather than explosives, to generate its destructive force. Upon impact, the rods would be capable of producing all the effects of an earth-penetrating nuclear weapon, without the radioactive fallout. Goldfarb admits that “Rods from God” are at least 10 years away from being operational, and face numerous technological and financial obstacles. Nevertheless, he maintains that space-based assets such as the rods will eventually become reality, and that the U.S. can either pursue such systems, or step aside and let Beijing lead the way. (Article, Link) 

» More stories on: Analysis, Space-Based Systems

SBX Said Near Completion

The new Sea-Based X-Band Radar (SBX) is nearing completion, reports the Associated Press. The SBX, currently being constructed in Corpus Christi, Texas, is an advanced radar system mounted on a semi-submersible oil-drilling rig. According to U.S. Army Col. Michael Smith, project manager of SBX, workers will test the rig’s mobility in the Gulf of Mexico before the SBX travels this summer around South America to its new home in Adak, Alaska. The rig is almost 240 feet wide and therefore cannot pass through the Panama Canal. (Article, Link) 

» More stories on: Detection and Tracking

» Missile system details for: Sea-Based X-Band Radar (SBX)

Peter Brookes on Weaponizing Space

Peter Brookes, senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation, argues persuasively in the New York Post for the deployment of strategic space-based military assets. He reiterates that space is critical to U.S. national security, but laments the fact that the Bush administration’s soon-to-be-issued National Space Policy—the first update since the Clinton administration’s in 1996—has created “hysteria” among arms control advocates, many of whom are already condemning Bush’s new policy with terms such as “arms race,” “strategic instability,” and “militarizing space.”
        Brookes pays particular attention to the contention that space-based systems could provoke an arms race, concluding that, “It ain’t necessarily so.” He reminds us that for decades, arms controllers denounced ballistic missile defense, warning that it would destabilize relations with China and Russia and spark a devastating post-Cold War arms race. Yet no such scenario has materialized. According the Brookes, “The Bush administration’s initial deployment of missile defense hasn’t caused an arms race or made relations with Beijing and Moscow any tougher than they already were. It has, however, improved our national security by providing the first protection against ballistic missiles—ever.”  (Article, Link) 

» More stories on: Analysis, Space-Based Systems

SBX Modifications Scheduled for 2006

The Missile Defense Agency plans to expand the Sea-Based X-Band Radar’s ability to communicate with missile defense systems other than the ground-based midcourse defense system, reports NTI. The expansion is scheduled for early in FY 2006.
        The SBX, currently being constructed in Corpus Christi, Texas, is an advanced radar system mounted on a semi-submersible oil-drilling rig. It will eventually be deployed from Adak, Alaska, and will be used to aid interceptors in homing in on enemy missiles over the Pacific. (Article, Link) 

» Missile system details for: Sea-Based X-Band Radar (SBX)

Taiwan Fires Cruise Missile

Taiwan has successfully test fired a cruise missile, reportedly its first, according to The China Times. The article suggests the test took place in March, during which Taiwan launched its new Hsuing Feng cruise missile from the Chiupeng military base in the southern Pingtung county. The missile is said to have a range of 1,000 km (620 miles) and could be used to attack targets in southeast China. The Hsuing Feng tested is said to have flown over 500 km (310 miles) before hitting its target. The missile could enter pilot production in late 2005 or early 2006.
        The significance of such a test is that Taiwan is begun to produce a counter-deterrent to China’s large and growing threat of literally hundreds of both ballistic and cruise missiles stationed near and aimed toward Taiwan. The deterrent, however, is comparatively quite modest. (Article, Link) 

» More stories on: Allies, Cruise Missiles, Taiwan, Testing - Foreign

Rumsfeld on China Buildup

Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld warned on Saturday that China’s military spending threatens Asia’s security balance. Speaking in Singapore, Rumsfeld particularly emphasized China’s growing ballistic missile arsenal: “China appears to be expanding its missile forces, allowing them to reach targets in many areas of the world while also expanding its missile capabilities within this region.” The Secretary of Defense also asked why China has so many ballistic missiles aimed at Taiwan.
        In a recent column, Cal Thomas underscores the reason for China’s military expansion: “[R]ather than feeling threatened, China intends to threaten others, especially the United States.” He cites Constantine Menges’ new book, China: The Gathering Threat, which argues persuasively that the U.S. must deploy a reliable missile defense system that can defend against a possible Chinese attack. Such a system could make the cost of China’s missile buildup prohibitive, or at least less cost-effective. China is expected to add 400 new warheads capable of reaching U.S. territory by 2008, against which the United States, absent any serious missile defenses, will be defenseless. (Article, Link) 

» June 7, 2005: Cal Thomas on China Buildup

» More stories on: China

Japan Ready to Move Ahead with Missile Defense

The Washington Times quotes Yoshinori Ono, chief of Japan’s Defense Agency, as saying that the joint Japanese-U.S. sea-based missile defense program will soon enter the development stage. The program includes the Standard Missile-3 (SM-3) interceptor, which will be deployed on Aegis-equipped destroyers and cruisers. The two nations launched the project in 1999 after North Korea tested its long-range Taep’o-dong 1 ballistic missile, which flew over Japan and landed into the Pacific Ocean. The article notes that actual production of the SM-3 is scheduled to begin around 2011. (Article, Link) 

» More stories on: Allies, Japan

» Missile system details for: Aegis Ship-Based BMD

U.S. to Sell Japan SM-2 Interceptors

The Pentagon plans to sell 40 Standard Missile-2 (SM-2) surface-to-air missiles to Japan, reports Reuters. Japan has requested the interceptors for its Maritime Self Defense Force fleet, in order to bolster its defense of critical sea-lanes. According to the Pentagon, “It is vital to the U.S. national interest to assist Japan to develop and maintain a strong and ready self-defense capability, which will contribute to an acceptable military balance in the area.” (Article, Link) 

» More stories on: Allies, Japan

» Missile system details for: Aegis Ship-Based BMD

Syria Tests Three Scud Missiles

On June 1, Israeli Channel 2 television reported that Syria tested three Scud missiles on May 27. Israel’s Green Pine Radar, integrated into its own Arrow ballistic missile defense system, detected the launches from the testing site in eastern Syria. A later report, however, claims they were launched from northern Syria, near Minakh, near Aleppo. One missile flew some 250 miles to southernmost Syria, near the border with Jordan.
        Update: The August 2005 issue of Jane’s Missiles & Rockets report that Israeli security sources said all three “were fired from mobile launchers near Minakh, north of Aleppo in northern Syria.”
        The New York Times picked up the story today, adding that, Israel allegedly chose to report the story only after the United States chose not to do so. The Times cites Israeli sources saying that the missiles launched were one older Scud B with a range of 185 miles and two Scud D missiles, with a range of 435 miles. Israeli military officials are quoted as speculating that the tests are an act of defiance by Syrian President Assad to the United States. The tests are the first missile launches by Syria since 2001.
        Update: However, Jane’s also reports that “[a]n Arab military source said the Syrians were careful to aim the missiles away from the southeastern part of the country because U.S. and Iraqi forces were attacking insurgents in al Qaim province close to Iraq’s border with Turkey.”
        In addition, one missile was fired southwest toward the Mediterranean, over the Turkish province of Hatay and shed debris over two Turkish villages there. Israelis claim to have film of both the launching and breakup. It is the first time Syria has ever launched a missile over another country, and Turkey is of course also a member of NATO.
        Israeli officials are also cited as observing that Syria could easily have directed the missile in a different direction, to land within its own territory. The tests came days before a scheduled election in newly unoccupied Lebanon.
        Russia’s Itar Tass quotes an unidentified “Russian expert in the field of missile technology” as saying that the missile tests were of political rather than military significance. The source added a bit of background on the number and type of the Soviet-origin missiles:

“The missiles of this type, which were developed in the Soviet Union in the 1960s, are in the arsenals of at least 25 countries of the world. In a number of countries, including Syria, work has been carried out to modernize the missiles. In particular, the Syrian army is equipped with modernized Scud-D missiles, with a range of 700 km. According to various estimates, Damascus could have 300 to 400 such missiles,” the expert explained. He recalled that the production of missiles of this type has been developed in North Korea on the basis of Soviet-made R-300 operational-tactical missiles.

        At a White House press conference, Scott McClellan today fielded a question about the test: (More »»») 

» June 3, 2005: White House press conference

» June 3, 2005: Itar Tass report on Syrian launches

» June 1, 2005: Original report of Syrian launches by Israeli television

» June 3, 2005: AP account of missile launches

» More stories on: Syria, Testing - Foreign

» Missile details: Sakr, Ababil-100/150

Russia Threatens Response to Space Deployments

Russia will take retaliatory steps if any country deploys weapons in space, threatened Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov on Thursday. As quoted by Russian news agencies, Ivanov emphasized that Russia is “categorically against the militarization of space,” and that “if some state begins to realize such plans, then we doubtless will take adequate retaliatory measures.” Ivanov added that Russia has plans to create a new missile system using SS-18 intercontinental ballistic missiles that will be able to launch multiple space vehicles into orbit using a single booster.
        Despite Ivanov’s rhetoric, there is reason to doubt whether Russia actually has the capability to take retaliatory steps against the U.S. in space. As Pavel Podvig, author of Russian Strategic Nuclear Forces, recently suggests, Russia “has lost its capability to carry out serious development projects in military space and is very unlikely to recover it.” If Podvig is correct, the U.S. need not worry about such an arms race. (Article, Link) 

» May 20, 2005: Podvig on Russian Space Capability

» More stories on: Russia, Space-Based Systems

» Missile details: SS-20

MTCR Meeting with Pakistan

Kyodo News Service reports that a delegation from the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) recently held talks with a Pakistani delegation on Pakistan’s missile program. The MTCR, created in the late 1980s, prohibits countries from trading in ballistic missile technology, especially those missiles with a range of 350 kilometers or greater. Pakistan has not yet signed the MTCR, although it claims to adhere to the general principles of nonproliferation. The MTCR previously sent a delegation to Pakistan in 2003. (Article, Link) 

» More stories on: Pakistan, Proliferation

Head of Rosoboronexport on Arms Cooperation

Military cooperation between Russia and Belarus is growing rapidly, reports the Belarusian daily Zvyazda. The article quotes Sergey Chemezov, director-general of Russia’s Rosoboronexport arms company, as claiming that Russian-Belarusian interaction accounts for one third of manufacturing and research facilities in the former Soviet Union, and 30-35 percent of jointly developed weaponry. This includes the S-300P and S-300V missile defense systems, which are exported worldwide. Russia has also signed military cooperation agreements with Ukraine, Moldova, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. Zvyazda notes that Chemezov is pursuing a single pricing policy in order to boost revenues. (Article, Link) 

» More stories on: Former Soviet Republics, Industry, Russia

» Missile system details for: S-300P (SA-10 Grumble), S-300V (SA-12A Gladiator, SA-12B Giant)

U.S. Intercepts Nuclear Material Bound for North Korea and Iran

The U.S. and its allies have intercepted 11 shipments of nuclear materials bound for North Korea and Iran. According to the State Department, the successful interdictions were carried out by the Proliferation Security Initiative, a two-year program started by President Bush that has the support of 60 nations. At present, the U.S. is withholding specific details of the interdictions to ensure continued cooperation from countries that do not otherwise wish their participation made public. (Article, Link) 

» More stories on: Iran, North Korea, Proliferation