Campaign for the Accountability of American Bases

Aviation Week
Feb 11, 2010
By Amy Butler

The Obama administration’s proposed 2011 spending plan includes some changes to major missile defense and space programs that emphasize a focus on space situational awareness and ballistic missile tracking capabilities. The proposal also underpins the aging nuclear weapons infrastructure, while adhering to the aim of eventually scrapping nuclear forces altogether and securing so-called nuclear loose material worldwide.

Few new expensive programs are being started in Fiscal 2011, and the most dramatic shift in the funding request is the termination of the joint Defense-Commerce Dept. National Polar-Orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System …

By contrast, the Air Force is setting aside funding for a follow-on Space-Based Space Surveillance (SBSS) procurement. The first SBSS, a Ball Aerospace/Boeing project that features a two-axis gimballed visible-light sensor to surveil satellites in geosynchronous orbit, is complete and slated for launch this summer.

www.aviationweek.com

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ITAR-TASS
February 2, 2010

The United States seeks to interact with Russia in the missile defence sphere, it is said in the US Ballistic Missile Defence Review (BMDR) released Monday. Such a document has been prepared by the Pentagon for the first time.

The review says that the US administration seeks to interact with Russia in the ballistic missile defence sphere. Together with Russia it is working on a wide agenda focused on the mutual early warning about missile launches, possible technical and operational cooperation.

It is admitted in the review that as of today only Russia and China have the potential for launching a large-scale attack on the US territory with the use of ballistic missiles. However, according to American specialists, such a scenario is very low probable and is not in the focus of the US missile defence plans.

Regarding Russia as an important partner, the document stresses further, the Barack Obama administration is working on the agenda aimed at bringing the two countries’ strategic military doctrines in line with the relations formed between them after the end of the Cold War. It is explained in the document that the United States and Russia are not enemies any longer and that there is no serious threat of war between them. …

Key areas of focus for the BMDR include:

Implementing a phased, adaptive approach for missile defence in Europe, as outlined in the Fact Sheet on US Missile Defence Policy: A “Phased, Adaptive Approach” for Missile Defence in Europe; Providing effective regional missile defences for US forces and allies against short-, medium-, intermediate-range missiles; Providing effective defence of the United States against longer-range missiles; Balancing ballistic missile defence capabilities and investments, accounting for near and long-term threats to the US, allies, and deployed forces; Determining requirements for ballistic missile defence capabilities, as well as the execution and oversight of the US ballistic missile defence program; and The objectives, requirements, and standards for ballistic missile defence program testing and evaluation …

www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=14779096&PageNum=0

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BBC News
February 4, 2010

Romania has agreed to host missile interceptors as part of a new US defence shield, its president says.

President Traian Basescu said the plan was approved by the defence council. It still needs parliamentary approval.

The US scrapped a previous missile shield, based in Poland and the Czech Republic, which had infuriated Russia.

Instead the new system would provide better defence from “the emerging threat” of Iranian short- and medium-range missiles, a US official said.

Mr Basescu said the system would “protect the whole of Romania’s territory”, but stressed that it “is not directed against Russia”.

He said Romania will host “ground capabilities to intercept missiles” that would be operational by 2015 if approved by parliament. …

Romania has agreed to host anti-ballistic missile interceptors as part of the administration’s “new missile defence plan… to protect US forward-deployed troops and our NATO allies against current and emerging ballistic missile threats from Iran,” he said.

Mr Obama’s decision to abandon the original plan in September was greeted with enthusiasm in Russia, and came amid attempts to “reset” the relationship between Washington and Moscow.

The anti-ballistic missile shield favoured by former President George W Bush would be replaced by a reconfigured system designed to shoot down short- and medium-range missiles, Mr Obama announced.

He said intelligence suggested Iran was concentrating on shorter-range, not intercontinental, missiles.

The Bush administration plans had infuriated Russia, which threatened to train nuclear warheads on Poland the Czech Republic in response.

The new system is built around ship- and land-based SM-3 missile interceptors.

In October, US Vice-President Joseph Biden visited Poland, Romania and the Czech Republic seeking support for the new system.

Poland has already signed up.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/low/world/europe/8498504.stm

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