Category Archives: Missile Defense

East Coast Missile Defense? Just Say No, Again

Posted on November 28, 2012 by tcollina

By Tom Z. Collina The FY 2013 Defense Authorization Bill is on the Senate floor this week, and Senator Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) is planning to offer an amendment that would promote the construction of a missile defense site on the … Continue reading →

Posted in Missile Defense | Tagged East Coast Missile Defense proposal, FY 2013 Defense Authorization Bill, U.S. Ground-based Missile Defense (GMD) | 1 Comment

New Report: After Over $30 Billion Spent, U.S. Missile Defense Still Has Serious “Shortcomings”

Posted on September 11, 2012 by tcollina

By Tom Z. Collina A report by the National Research Council (NRC) released today finds that the US Ground-based Missile Defense (GMD) system deployed Alaska and California has “shortcomings” so serious that it recommends the system be completely redesigned, rebuilt … Continue reading →

Posted in Missile Defense, Nuclear Weapons | Tagged Ground-based Interceptor (GBI), Missile Defense Agency, National Research Council, Phased Adaptive Approach (PAA), Rep. Michael Turner (R-Ohio), two-stage Ground-Based Interceptor (GBI), U.S. Ground-based Missile Defense (GMD) | Leave a comment

Dumping the ABM Treaty: Was It Worth It?

Posted on June 12, 2012 by tcollina

In retrospect, the Bush administration should not have fielded its national missile defense system. The technology was not ripe; the threat had not materialized; and the opportunity cost was too high.  By Tom Z. Collina Ten years ago this week, … Continue reading →

Posted in Missile Defense, Nuclear Weapons, Space | Tagged Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty, Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD), nuclear arms race, President George W. Bush, START II treaty, two-stage Ground-Based Interceptor (GBI), U.S.-Russian strategic relationship | Leave a comment

East Coast Missile Defense? First, Solve the Decoy Problem

Posted on April 26, 2012 by tcollina

By Tom Z. Collina As the House Armed Services Committee marks up its version of the fiscal 2013 defense authorization bill, some strange proposals are emerging. Perhaps the oddest, from Rep. Michael Turner (R-Ohio), chair of the strategic forces subcommittee, … Continue reading →

Posted in Missile Defense, Nuclear Weapons | Tagged Missile Defense | 5 Comments

More Collateral Damage from Missile Defense

Posted on September 26, 2011 by Greg Thielmann

U.S.-Russian negotiations on strategic arms reductions have demonstrated time and again that U.S. missile defense plans are an obstacle to negotiating lower levels of offensive nuclear forces.  Security experts have been providing more reminders lately that in attempting to treat … Continue reading →

Posted in Asia, India, Missile Defense, Regions | Tagged Missile Defense, MTCR, NATO, NATO 2010 Lisbon Summit, NPT | 1 Comment

To Russia, With Love?

Posted on August 23, 2011 by Tim Farnsworth

By Greg Thielmann Last week’s 20th anniversary commemorations of the 1991 Soviet coup attempt prompted some personal reflections on other events affecting relations between Washington and Moscow during that turbulent period. Two years before the coup, a visit by U.S. … Continue reading →

Posted in Europe, Missile Defense, Nuclear Weapons, Regions, Russia | Tagged Aegis Missile Defense System, Russia-Georgia Conflict, Russia-U.S., USS Monterey (CG-61) | 1 Comment

Woolsey Misstates the Intelligence in Missile Defense Pitch

Posted on June 13, 2011 by Greg Thielmann

By Greg Thielmann I would like to second Sarah Palin in being “appalled and surprised” in reading the June 7 Foreign Policy article by R. James Woolsey and Rebeccah Heinrichs, “Giving Away the Farm.” But the reason for my reaction … Continue reading →

Posted in Iran, Middle East, Missile Defense, Nuclear Weapons, Uncategorized | Tagged Iran Nuclear Timeline, James Woolsey, Missile Defense, Sarah Palin | Leave a comment

Why Sarah Palin Is Wrong About Missile Defense Cooperation with Russia

Posted on June 10, 2011 by Daryl G. Kimball

by Daryl G. Kimball This week former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin parroted the misinformed critiques by Republican members of Congress and former CIA director James Woolsey about sharing missile launch data with Russia. In an entry on her Facebook page, … Continue reading →

Posted in Iran, Missile Defense, Nuclear Weapons, Russia | Tagged 2011 Defense Authorization Act, Congressional Commission on the Strategic Posture of the United States, Defense Technical Cooperation Agreement, Missile Defense, New START, Russia-U.S. | 1 Comment

Pentagon Oversells Missile Defense Test

Posted on April 15, 2011 by Tim Farnsworth

By Tom Z. Collina Today, the Pentagon’s Missile Defense Agency (MDA) announced that it conducted a “successful” intercept test of the Phased Adaptive Approach system to be deployed in Europe starting this year. This test of the SM-3 interceptor might … Continue reading →

Posted in Missile Defense, Nuclear Weapons | Leave a comment

Whither Strategic Arms Control: Clues from Carnegie

Posted on April 4, 2011 by Greg Thielmann

By Greg Thielmann Last week’s 2011 Carnegie International Nuclear Policy Conference in Washington, D.C. provided some revealing perspectives on the challenges and opportunities ahead for future strategic arms control agreements between the United States and Russia. The dynamics of strategic … Continue reading →

Posted in Missile Defense, Nuclear Weapons, Uncategorized | Tagged 2011 Carnegie International Nuclear Policy Conference, Missile Defense, New START, Russia-U.S. | 3 Comments