The author, a Former U.S. Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, evaluates the case against missile defense and concludes that in the current geopolitical environment, a limited, cooperative missile defense system between the U.S. and Russia would do more to enhance international stability than it would to harm it.

James Pinkerton argues that efforts by environmentalists to block missile defense also threaten civillian space efforts.

The Pentagon has conducted hundreds of crisis-simulation war games to understand how an enemy armed with nuclear, chemical or biological weapons and long-range missiles might use them against the United States. Now, top aides to President Bush are using some of the findings to build a case for a $60 billion missile defense system. But the results of the exercises, also raise significant questions about whether missile defense answers the emerging threat.

Henry F. Cooper argues that the Pentagon should consider space-based missile defense system in their planning.

US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld argued recently that the Pentagon should consider using outer space as it develops missile defense options that in the past had not been fully explored.

An anonymous State department official argued that some kind of missile defense system is inevitable. He also argued that Chinese and Russian warnings that a U.S. deployment will cause an arms race are insignificant as both Russia and China have already embarked on a modernization program.