The fledgling U.S. missile defense system would never be able to counter a large-scale missile attack and is likely only to spark another nuclear arms race, a senior Russian military official said yesterday.
The author, a former U.S. intelligence officer and weapons inspector, argues that Russia's new Topol-M ballistic missile has effectively ended the U.S. dream of an effective missile defense.
Russia is relying more and more on its strategic nuclear arsenal as its conventional strength continues to deteriorate.
Russia has successfully tested a modernized anti-missile missile, which defense analysts are interpreting as a direct response to the US withdrawl from the anti-ballistic missile treaty.
Russia is moving forward with the development of its new nuclear missile system that is, according to Putin, "unlike any weapon held by other countries". Analysts believe that he is referring to the Topol-M which is capable of manuevering post-launch. This move could be intended as a signal to the United States as Washington pushes forward with a missile defense system.
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Analysts say that a combination of US military efforts - including missile defense, plans for new low-yield nuclear weapons, and expansion up to Russia's western doorstep - are chilling relations with Moscow and spurring a new, higher-tech arms race.
The author analyzes recent Russian missile tests to determine how Russian responses to U.S. missile defense plans are changing their nuclear doctrine.
Russia announced the successful development and testing of a "maneuverable reentry vehicle" ? a technology under development for decades that could provide a rudimentary guidance system for intercontinental missiles and render them difficult or impossible to destroy.
Russia plans to develop an extensive missile defense system, which could include space-based components, according to Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov. ?We will definitely develop theater missile defense systems, as well as space defenses,? Ivanov said.
Russia has begun a plan to build a missile-defense shield, including a space-based defense system, along the lines of one being developed by the United States according to top Russian officials.