"America's missile defense shield 'directed against Iran'

Putin laughs

Putin laughs in the face of a reporter about the #anti-missile_system against #Russia. In this video, the reporter talks about missile defense, and the reaction of Putin has to be seen.

~ Interviewer: "NATO claims that the missile shield was not built against you but against #Iran".

~ Putin: "You really makes me laugh. God bless you, because it's almost time to finish the day, indeed it is already time to go to sleep. At least I get home in good humor".

US intentions in the Pacific

'N. Korea useful idiot for US to increase Pacific region presence'

Washington has scrapped a key phase of its European missile defence shield, citing a lack of funds and development problems. The United States will deploy additional ground-based missile interceptors on its Pacific Coast instead, in what is said to be a response to Pyongyang's recent nuclear threats. Former MI5 agent Annie Machon, believes Washington is using the threats from North Korea as a pretext.

US military cutbacks

Another step in the collapse of Empire?

US drops key European missile defense component

RT,

16 March, 2013

6

The United Stated is abandoning a key part of its Eastern European missile defense plan due to development problems and funding, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel has announced. The focus, he said, will be shifted to perceived threats from North Korea.

Interceptors in Poland and Romania, the deployment of which had been the source of heavy criticism from Moscow, will be scrapped.

Hagel told the press on Friday that the decision was made as part of an overall restructuring of the country's missile defense plans, with an eye to stopping perceived threats from Iran and North Korea.

The restructuring of the program will see $1 billion shifted to add some 14 new interceptors to the 26 existing ones in Alaska designed to counter potential North Korea missiles.

Washington claims that its decision was prompted by a need to address North Korea's faster-than-anticipated progress in nuclear weapons development. The changes to the program will free up the money to do so, Hagel said.

Explaining the rationale behind the initial plans for American outposts in Poland and Romania, Hagel said, "the purpose was to add to the protection of the US homeland already provided by our current [ground-based interceptors] against missile threats from the Middle East."

But, he added, "The timeline for deploying this program had been delayed to at least 2022 due to cuts in Congressional funding. Meanwhile the threat matures. By shifting resources from this lagging program ... We will be able to add protection against missiles from Iran sooner, also providing additional protection against the North Korean threat.”

However, the Poland- and Romania-based interceptors were only one component in a multifaceted missile defense program. While Phase 4 – the now-scrapped interceptors – are off the table, phases 1 through 3 are set to continue as planned.

"The missile deployments the United States are making in phases 1 through 3 of the European Phased Adaptive approach including sites in Poland and Romania will still be able to provide coverage of all European NATO territory as planned by 2018," Hagel said.

Kremlin concerns

The Kremlin has argued that deployment of the systems in its neighborhood was aimed at countering Russian missiles and undermining its nuclear deterrent, though Washington said the system was aimed at countering threats from Iran.

During initial negotiations with the George W. Bush administration, Moscow offered Washington the use of an alternative site in Azerbaijan in order to counter the Iranian threats evoked by the US.

The missile shield also faced strong domestic opposition in Poland and Romania, bringing the Obama administration in 2009 to announce that it was canceling its plans for the project.

But a reformulated scheme was announced a month later in October 2009, showing plans to place smaller, mobile SM-3 ballistic missile interceptors in the region by 2018.

Besides the placement of the interceptors, Russian officials have also opposed a radar installation set to be based in the Czech Republic. The base would enable US forces and their NATO partners to monitor activities in European Russian airspace.

Hagel stressed that other components of American missile defense plans in Europe would continue, and that Washington’s commitment in Europe "remains ironclad," but made no reference to Kremlin objections to the program.

An anonymous senior State Department official told the AP that while Poland and Romania were informed of the decision ahead of the announcement, Russia was not.

AFP Photo / Wojtek Rodwanki

More military expenditure

US to set up missile

 interceptors as North Korean threat escalates

United States Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel says the US will have 14 missile interceptors up and running by 2017 in order to curb the threat of an attack from North Korea

RT,

15 March, 2013

Sec. Hagel, who joined President Barack Obama’s official cabinet earlier this year, said the interceptors will go up along the US West Coast as a precautionary measure while the threat of an assault from North Korea continues to climb.

“The United States stands firm against aggression,” Sec. Hagel said during a Friday afternoon press conference.

Announcing the decision during the briefing, Hagel said the decision will ensure that America “Maintains out commitment to our allies.”

Earlier in the week, James Miller, defense undersecretary for policy, told reporters that that the Pentagon has the ability to deploy up to 14 additional missile interceptors "if needed,” but declined to say any plans had been set in stone. On Friday, however, Sec. Hagel and other Defense Department top-brass confirmed that the US would be installing the interceptors, citing a growing threat from both North Korean and Iran.

The 14 interceptors will accompany 30 already in place at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California and Fort Greely, Alaska, and additionally the Pentagon says it plans to deploy a radar tracking station in Japan.

Israel's "Magic Wand"

Israel Successfully Test-Fires Magic Wand, Successor to Iron Dome Interceptor

Iron Dome intercepted nearly 421 rockets in the latest Israel-Gaza conflict.

Intemationial Business Times,

26 November, 2012

Israel has successfully test-fired Magic Wand, the successor to the Iron Dome interceptor that featured prominently in the recent Gaza conflict. And now, even before the aftershocks of the Israel-Gaza conflict dissipate, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have tested the next generation of anti-missile systems.

The interceptor, also known as David's Sling, was jointly developed by Israel's Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and the United States' Raytheon.
Magic Wand, it is understood, was developed against the Hezbollah missiles from Lebanon. The country is subject to threats from the Islamic militant group, perceived as the long arm of Iran.


Israel is hoping the latest system in its arsenal will be useful in intercepting a variety of short-range ballistic and cruise missiles. The interception range for Magic Wand is between 70km and 75km. Each interceptor has been estimated to have cost around $1mn (£624,000) and expected to be fully operational in 2014. 
 

Testing was originally scheduled for 2013 but the critical situation of recent weeks has seen the schedule pulled forward. The Iron Dome interceptor successfully stopped over 400 missiles from the Gaza Strip. IDF statements indicate Iron Dome has a success rate of approximately 90 percent and the latest interceptor, it is hoped, will extend the same run.


"The great success of the Iron Dome batteries during Operation Pillar of Defense proves beyond a shadow of a doubt the tremendous importance of anti-missile systems. Israel is a world leader in this department thanks to the Israeli defence industries and its developers," said Defence Minister Ehud Barak in a statement, adding, "The completion of the programme will be a significant layer for Israel's multi-tiered anti-missile defence system."


Officials in the Jewish state are reportedly pleased with the success of the latest interceptor, as its system is much more complex.


"The current test simulated the relevant threats the system will be called to deal with. This is a landmark in Israel's operational capability in the multi-layered defence layout. There will be other experiments. The Magic Wand's radar tracked the target from the beginning until interception. Unlike the Iron Dome, it's a system without batteries that operates as a national unit," a senior official at the Defence Ministry (who did not want to be indentified) told Ynet News.

US pushes for missile defence shield in Gulf

"If all else fails - go to war"

Gerald Celente

Persian Gulf states speed up U.S. missile shield

The United States is pressing Arab allies to accelerate efforts to establish an integrated missile defense network to counter the threat of Iran.

UPI,

1 October, 2012

As tensions swell in the Persian Gulf, the United States is pressing its fractious Arab allies to accelerate efforts to establish an integrated missile defense network to counter the threat of Iran's growing ballistic arsenal.

That would add considerable weight to U.S. anti-missile defenses in the region, recently reinforced, in any conflict with the Islamic Republic.

It would also mean, and has already, contracts worth billions of dollars for U.S. defense companies that are increasingly dependent on export orders amid stinging cutbacks in U.S. defense spending.

In recent months, the Pentagon has approved the sale of advanced missile, bomb, radar, electronic warfare and aircraft systems to gulf Arab states that not so long ago it would never have allowed, if only because of Israeli opposition.

These days, the Israelis find themselves sharing a common enemy with Saudi Arabia, which could partly explain the lack of opposition to the current sales.

A case in point is the December 2011 sale of two batteries of Lockheed Martin's Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense anti-missile system to the United Arab Emirates. That $1.86 billion deal was the first foreign sale of THAAD. Lockheed Martin says other Gulf Cooperation Council states, most notably Saudi Arabia, are interested in acquiring THAAD as well.

Others U.S. missile-makers like Boeing, Raytheon and Northrop Grumman are raring to go.

Along with the missile hardware, the gulf monarchies will need state-of-the-art radar systems to detect missile threats, command and control systems to coordinate region-wide operations.

U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and other senior members of President Barack Obama's administration met key figures from the six-member GCC for talks on the missile shield on the sidelines of last week's U.N. General Assembly.

"It's the United States' goal, to encourage the GCC countries to develop this missile defense architecture because ... to truly protect the region through missile defense it requires a regional approach," a senior U.S. official said.

U.S. sources said that high-value contracts for U.S. systems are expected from some of the member states of the GCC -- Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman and Bahrain. But they gave no details.

Still, that will mark a major turnaround. But Iran's ever-growing missile forces -- Israeli analysts say Tehran has an estimated 300-400 ballistic missiles deployed -- and supposedly ever-improving technology are an obvious spur.

The GCC states have long talked of setting up such a network along the western shore of the gulf to counter the perceived threat from Iran on the other side of the strategic waterway through which flows one-third of the world's seaborne oil trade.

But deep-rooted tribal and dynastic differences between the ruling families in the gulf monarchies have prevented any meaningful progress, or even the pooling of data.

Even now, they're still reluctant to embrace multilateral efforts. They can't even agree where to site the command center for a regional system.

This explains why all the U.S. missile-defense sales are conducted on a bilateral basis with the individual GCC states.

Until recently, only the United Arab Emirates, which has built up formidable air strength in recent years, has shown any real interest in missile defense. It has spent an estimated $12 billion on missile defense since 2008.

The Saudis began moving toward acquiring anti-missile defenses and possibly coordinating with the Emirates and Kuwait on developing an integrated missile shield that could mesh with U.S. assets, mainly naval, in the region after the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003.

Riyadh spent $1.7 billion in 2011 on upgrading its Raytheon MIM-104 Patriot units and is now eyeing THAAD.

Kuwait wants to buy 60 Patriot PAC-3 missiles, the most advanced variant, worth up to $4.2 billion.

The toppling of Saddam Hussein, whose military forces had blocked an Iranian to the GCC states in his 1980-88 war with Iraq, and the subsequent emergence of a Shiite-dominated government in Baghdad inclined toward Shiite Iran, alarmed the Gulf Arab states.

The U.S. military withdrawal from Iraq in December 2010, and U.S. abandonment of a key ally, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, before he was toppled in February 2011, deepened fears the Americans might eventually leave the gulf states in the lurch.

Focus on Asia-Pacific tensions

Vietnam prepares its people for war with China

A new National Defense Education Act has been approved by the standing committee of Vietnam's National Assembly on Aug. 20 to provide basic military training to every civilian under 50 years old, according to Duowei News, an outlet run by overseas Chinese.

Want China Times,

23 August, 2012

To prepare for a possible military conflict with Beijing over the disputed Paracel and Spratly islands in the South China Sea, Hanoi has tried several diplomatic and military approaches. During the recent standoff between Chinese and Philippine vessels near the waters of Scarborough Shoal, Su-27 fighters from the Vietnamese air force began their first patrols over the Spratlys to put pressure on the Chinese government. To counter Beijing's influence in Southeast Asia, Hanoi has also changed its attitude towards the United States. US naval vessels were also invited by Vietnam to conduct a joint military exercise between the former enemies.

Facing its own territorial dispute with China in the East China Sea, Japan also decided to provide advanced patrol boats to the Vietnamese government through its Official Development Assistance program. To reduce China's cultural influence, a policy was also issued by the Vietnamese authorities to limit the broadcasting of Chinese TV programs in the country.

From its experience during the Vietnam War, Hanoi knows the value of mobilizing its population. Accordingly, it believes every civilian under 50 years old should be trained for battle in case a war with China should break out. Political education has also been introduced to teach the nation's children that their neighbor to the north is an aggressor.

Wealthy Vietnamese Face Backlash as Economy Worsens

WSJ,

23 August, 2012

The arrest this week of Vietnamese banking and soccer mogul Nguyen Duc Kien comes amid a growing backlash against Vietnam's wealthy tycoons, as the country struggles with an economy that is going from bad to worse.

Some of Vietnam's Communist leaders have never been entirely comfortable with their country's pro-market reforms. Waves of liberalization have often been followed by periods of inaction.

Analysts now worry that combating politicians and a hostile public might thwart the reforms needed to recapture the stellar growth rates that once made the country one of world's most sought-after emerging markets.

Plans for privatizations have stalled as bad debts have rippled through the banking system. Meanwhile, top executives at some state-owned enterprises have been arrested and charged with mismanaging state resources after the global financial crisis sent many businesses into a financial tailspin, exposing the shortcomings of Vietnam's bid to catch up with its neighbors after decades of war and Marxist economic planning.

The shakeout is spilling over into the private sector. Politically connected tycoons such as Mr. Kien, who was arrested Monday and accused of running unlicensed investment firms, are facing growing scrutiny for allegedly skirting banking regulations. Mr. Kien or his legal representatives couldn't be reached to comment.

In the latest developments Thursday, the chief executive of the bank that Mr. Kien helped found in the 1990s, Asia Commercial Bank, resigned for personal reasons. Ly Xuan Hai is now helping police with their investigation, a bank spokesman said, although authorities have stressed that ACB itself isn't part of the probe and that Mr. Kien left ACB in 2010. Mr. Kien owns about 5% of ACB shares in addition to holdings in other Vietnamese banks. Mr. Hai couldn't be reached to comment.

The share price of ACB, 15%-owned by Standard Chartered, STAN.LN -0.61% fell again in trading Thursday, down 6.7%. That decline helped to extend a series of sharp losses on the broader VN Index, which has lost 10.5% so far this week.

State-run media also reported Thursday that ACB was given access to up to 46 trillion dong, or $2.2 billion, in emergency central-bank funds to offset a brief panic among depositors.

A statement on the government's website said Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung met with government agencies and law-enforcement chiefs on Wednesday and urged them to act quickly to stabilize the country's banking system after bad debts doubled to about 10% of total lending in recent months.

The political infighting playing out in Hanoi could hamper reforms needed to clean up bad debts in the banking sector and get Vietnam's economy moving again after expanding a sluggish 4.7% in the second quarter from a year earlier—well below the government's 6% full-year target.

Other big names have fallen foul of the authorities in recent months. Businesswoman Dang Thi Hoang Yen became one of the first tycoons elected to the country's National Assembly last year, but was ousted in May from the Communist-run legislature for failing to disclose that she was no longer a member of the party.

In the state sector, eight executives at Vinashin received prison sentences of up to 20 years in April after the shipbuilder nearly collapsed in 2010. It had racked up around $4.4 billion in debt.

Analysts say the crackdown is increasing pressure on Prime Minister Dung, the main architect of Vietnam's rapid-growth policies. He survived a behind-the-scenes leadership challenge last year, but his power is being clipped further by the rise of rivals such as Communist President Truong Tan Sang, who is widely seen as a hard-liner, along with a national legislature that appears more willing to hold the country's top leaders to account.

At the height of the Vinashin scandal, Mr. Dung apologized in a televised session of Vietnam's National Assembly for failing to properly supervise state-run companies, and executives at other such companies have since been arrested.

"Vietnam and Mr. Dung pursued a policy of high growth at all costs, and they were willing to overlook many things in order to achieve that goal," said Carl Thayer, a veteran observer of Vietnamese politics at the Australian Defence Force Academy in Canberra.

The backlash against Vietnam's go-go years, when it averaged annual growth rates of more than 7% for nearly a decade, isn't confined to the country's inner political sanctum. Anger at currency devaluations and high inflation rates has demoralized many ordinary people in recent years.

Popular newspapers have run lurid stories about wealthy Vietnamese, accusing some of them of cutting open the skulls of live monkeys and scooping out their brains as a gourmet treat, just as the country's old emperors were reputed to do.

This week, the Vietnamese press ran a series of pictures of Mr. Kien's luxury cars, emphasizing the gulf between the new elites who grew rich during the Vietnam's boom years, and the millions who now struggle with sky-high interest rates and the threat of currency devaluations and inflation.

Mr. Kien, who faces up to two years in prison for his alleged offenses, is an especially high-profile figure. The 48-year-old is instantly recognizable by his shock of thick, white hair and is as well-known for his soccer exploits as for his role in establishing Asia Commercial Bank. Last year, he took control of Vietnam's new professional soccer league in a bid to increase attendance, and bought a premier league Hanoi Football Club after his other side was relegated.

"He's a big celebrity here," said Jonathan Pincus at Harvard University's Fulbright Economic Teaching Program in Ho Chi Minh City. Mr. Kien's arrest "will make people sit up and take notice."

China media reacts sharply to Japan-U.S. island drill

Asahi Shimbun,

23 August, 2012

A military drill simulating an island assault by Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force and U.S. Marines has drawn a sharp reaction from Chinese media amid a ramp-up in tensions over a cluster of disputed islets.

"Villains do evil together," commented one China Central Television newscaster, and the influential nationalist Global Times newspaper urged China to prepare for possible conflict.

The exercise involves the islands of Guam and Tinian, which is adjacent to Saipan in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. It began Aug. 21.

The exercise simulates landing on and securing a small island, the first of its kind for Japanese ground troops and U.S. Marines. It comes amid tit-for-tat landing stunts by activists and a war of words over the Senkaku Islands, which are held by Japan but claimed by China; it calls them Diaoyu.

A Defense Ministry official said the exercise does not presuppose an invasion by China of the Senkakus, but it will test cooperation with U.S. forces.

"It will contribute to deterrence," said a senior SDF official. "We would turn to them for support in the event of an emergency."

About 2,000 Marines from Okinawa Prefecture and 40 Japanese troops are to take part. They will use a U.S. amphibious assault ship, helicopters and hovercrafts to land on an island, sources said.

Chinese media outlets, which support China's claim to the Senkakus, have played up the drill.

A program on state-run China Central Television on Aug. 22 provided extensive coverage, with a detailed rundown of what the troops will do.

Media also reacted negatively to a Japanese report that quoted a top Defense Ministry official as saying the drill simulates a response to a Chinese advance on the Senkakus; and the exercise explores how to retake the islets.

Beijing has yet to react officially, but there is a reported growing belief that the exercise is intended as a provocation by Japan after Japanese lawmakers joined activists in a landing on the islets.

Meanwhile, the Beijing Times newspaper expressed concern about U.S. intentions, saying the nation is taking advantage of the territorial standoff between China and Japan to enhance its own position in East Asia.

Pentagon plans new missile defences in Asia

The United States is planning to build a new missile defence shield in Asia to contain threats from North Korea and counter China's growing missile capabilities.

The Telegraph,

23 August, 2012

A defensive array could include a new radar system in southern Japan and possibly another in South East Asia, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The news came after an unnamed US official told Jane's Defence Weekly that China's People's Liberation Army tested an intercontinental ballistic missile on July 24 which has the range to strike any city in the United States.

The DF-41 missile can carry ten separate nuclear warheads, each of which can be programmed to strike at a different target, the magazine reported.

The Pentagon is also concerned about China's development of a new "carrier-killer" anti-ship missile that can strike at the US Pacific fleet.

These missiles, which have a range of 930 miles, are designed to prevent US ships from approaching the South China Sea, a key sphere of Chinese influence.

US Defence officials told the Wall Street Journal that the core of the new anti-missile shield would be a powerful early-warning radar, known as an X-Band, sited on a southern Japanese island. Discussions between Japan and the United States are currently underway.

The new X-Band would join an existing radar that was installed in northern Japan in 2006 and a third X-Band could be placed in South East Asia.

The resulting radar arc would cover North Korea, China and possibly even Taiwan. China currently has over 1,000 missiles pointed at Taiwan, and is likely to strenuously object to any interference from the US.

A spokesman for the Japanese Defence ministry declined to comment. A spokesman for the Pentagon told the newspaper that North Korea is the "immediate threat" that is "driving our missile defence decision making".

Israeli missile 'defence'

The only reason Israel would have to fear Iran is the retaliation if they themselves attack Iran

Israel upgrades missile shield over Iran, Syria fears

Israel is upgrading its ‘Arrow II’ missile shield over fears of possible attacks by Iran and Syria. The ‘Block-4’ upgrade is currently being installed and deployed across the country, a senior Israeli defense official said on Sunday

RT,

5 August, 2012

The US Missile Defense Agency and the Israeli Missile Defense Organization completed a successful test-run of the Block-4 in February. 

 

The upgrade, which has been in development for over four years, boasts greater accuracy and the ability to intercept missiles even further away.

"It is part of the technological race in the region," Reuters said, citing an Israeli official who declined to be named due to the controversial nature of the program.

The upgrade included improvements in Arrow’s software, hardware, sensor array and command and control systems, the official told Haaretz. 

 

This development should be viewed as part of the complex geopolitical relations between Israel, Iran and Hezbollah, the newspaper reported, citing “exclusive details” provided by the Defense Ministry. 

 

The announcement came the day after Iran said it successfully test-fired an upgraded version of its Fateh-110 short-range ballistic missile. 

 

This new missile platform is “meant for defense,” but is capable of destroying both land and sea targets with the same “pinpoint precision,” Iranian officials said.

Israel fears a conventional military attack by Iran, as well as a possible chemical weapon or Scud missile assault by Syria, Tel Aviv said.

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak, and the ministry's Director-General Udi Shani, made funding of missile and rocket defense systems a top priority, Haaretz reported.

The US has been a longtime investor in the development of Israel’s missile defense shield, with the Pentagon and Boeing acting as key partners for the project. More than half of Arrow’s nearly $3 billion price tag has been paid for by Washington. US companies have also assisted Israel in research and development for the Arrow system.

For its assistance in underwriting the project, Washington is free to draw on Israel’s missile defense technology for its own use, the Israeli official said: "The policy of the [Israeli] Ministry of Defense is to provide all data to the US, for the security of the US, including on targets, interceptors, radars and command and control.”

The Arrow system has been in service for 12 years, after the first Arrow battery was declared fully operational in October 2000. The Arrow batteries are considered one of the most advanced missile defense programs currently in operation anywhere in the world

Jerusalem is developing the Arrow III for planned deployment in 2014 or 2015. Unlike previous generations of interceptors, the proposed Arrow III system will engage incoming missiles in space, using detachable payloads that zero in on their target.

With Israel’s Iron Dome system for intercepting short-range rockets and artillery shells now operational, Israel is working on even more powerful interceptor technology, known as David's Sling or Magic Wand, due to be deployed next year.

Tit-for-tat

This harks back to the Cold War days, except that this time there is NO doubt who is responsible.

Iskander gets $1.2bln update to counter US missile defense

Russia is allocating $1.2 billion to modernize the weapon that renders the US missile defense in Europe useless. Prime Minister Medvedev says the Russian army must make the Iskander-M its main weapon.

RT,

25 July, 2012

“Iskander-M is certainly one of the most efficient weapons in its class and, in our opinion, is far ahead of foreign analogs,” Medvedev stated at a meeting on the development of Russia’s defense industry. These systems should become the core of the Ground Forces’ missile units, the PM added.

The government has allocated 24 billion rubles (over US$740 million) to 17 enterprises for the serial production of Iskander-M missile systems, Medvedev said, cites RIA Novosti.

The arms-manufacturing plants will contribute 16 billion rubles (about US $495 million) of their own funds to the project, the head of the government said during his visit to the Kolomna Machine-Building Design Bureau (KBM), which makes Iskander missiles.

The Iskander missile system was officially adopted by the Russian Army in 2006. The system is produced in two versions: Iskander-M for Russian military forces and Iskander-E as an export modification of the defense weapon.

The modernization of the enterprises will help both to timely provide the Russian Army with Iskanders and also to increase the system’s export potential, a source in the governmental military-industrial commission told Kommersant daily.

“The demand for Iskander-E is quite high, but the domestic market remains the priority today," the source said. "The re-equipping of the enterprises will begin in 2014. Right after the majority of contracts with the Defense Ministry are fulfilled, the export trend will be intensified thanks to the modernization."

The Iskander tactical missile system has become Moscow’s counter-argument in the dispute over the US –planned missile defense shield in Europe – which Russia sees as a threat to its national security.

Back in November 2011, then-President Medvedev outlined measures Russia would take in response to the development of America’s missile defense. Those included the deployment of Iskander missiles in the country’s westernmost Kaliningrad Region.

Shortly after that, the head of state launched a radar system in Kaliningrad which protects the country from missile attacks and covers all Europe and Atlantic.

Chinese defence spending

US missile shield to encircle Chinese economic tiger

American plans to develop a missile shield in Asia have alarmed Beijing. With 250 million Chinese officially considered poor, spending billions to challenge the US military could sink China’s economy without firing a single shot.

RT,

22 July, 2012

The Chinese military has voiced concern that the US missile shield plans to destabilize the military balance on the continent.

In March the Pentagon revealed plans to deploy elements of its global antiballistic missile defense system in Asia and the Middle East. Such a shield would include deployable ship-based interceptors and land-based missile interceptors located in the United States’ western territories. 

 

To maintain a credible deterrence, China might have to modernize its nuclear arsenal to correspond properly to the realities of modern warfare. 

 

"It undermines strategic stability," acknowledged Major General Zhu Chenghu of China's National Defense University. The General first became internationally known in 2005 when he declared that China might use nuclear weapons if the US intervened militarily in a Chinese conflict with Taiwan.

Now the General says that “Beijing will have to improve its capabilities of survival, penetration … otherwise it is very difficult for us to maintain the credibility of nuclear deterrence."

The US Department of Defense estimates China’s nuclear arsenal in about 130-195 deployed nuclear-capable ballistic missiles. The scattered estimate shows that American intelligence data on China’s nuclear arsenal is far from exact. The Chinese military has not specified so far what exact modernizations its nuclear arsenal is expected to undergo to successfully counter America’s future nuclear shield in the region.

Does China have enough clout to defy America?

Though China is considered the world’s second largest economy, its financial capability to cope with American economical might is far from certain. 

 

In some ways, modern day China resembles the Soviet Union. Just like in the last days of the USSR, billions from the country’s budget are being spent on military needs. And despite apparent economic prosperity, the gap between the rich and the poor is astonishing.

In the last year alone, the number of poor in China has hit a quarter of a billion. But instead of addressing daunting poverty issues, Beijing has had to buy new weaponry and invest billions into producing its own.

“China’s (arms budget) is now second largest in the world at $106 billion,” 

international journalist Dr. Conn Hallinan explained to RT. “This is an enormous expenditure of wealth at a time when diverting that could make a real impact on poverty. And it also happens at a time when there’s an economic slowdown that is happening in Asia,” he recalled.

The same applies to India, which last year was the world’s leading weapon importer, including an eye-watering $20 billion worth of French fighter jets.

This is why Washington’s return-to-Asia policy – from selling weapons to holding joint war games in the region – is deeply troubling Asian countries, especially China.

Renato Reyes, a political activist who heads the Bayan Coalition in Manila, Philippines, told RT that “the US wants full spectrum dominance in the region. It wants to project its military power to everyone concerned, especially China. The US may not be headed for a direct military confrontation with China at the moment, but the US wants to contain China, wants to encircle China and keep its subservient to US dictates.”

This situation has drawn historic parallels with the Cold War. Many experts are still sure that the huge arms race in the 1960s between the United States and the USSR was Washington’s tactic to sabotage the Soviet economy.

“When it became more of an economic race, it continued an armed race that weakened the economy of the Soviet Union. It is a stupid game and it has been going on ever since the 1950's, unfortunately, and Russians were the victims and I think China will to some extent be the victim too,” former Australian diplomat Gregory Clark argues. 

 

It remains to be seen if the Asian giants China and India can continue growing their military muscle without risking political and social instability in the process.

United States launches Cold War 2.0

Cold War 2.0: Russia tests fires new intercontinental ballistic missile

As we watch Europe fall apart before our eyes and the global economy crumble there is still the ever-present threat of war.

While the United States and NATO are definitely on the back foot, this does not, in my mind take the threat off the table.

Israel is saying that whatever is agreed diplomatically it may still attack Iran 
 
In the meanwhile Russia is finding its voice over the missile defense shield that is based in neighboring Romania and Poland. It does not accept assurances from NATO that this is directed at Iran and not Russia.

This has long been a bone of contention for Russia, but it is only with the changing correlation of forces that Moscow has become more outspoken.

Recently Russia has warned that it would carry out a pre-emptive strike if plans to develop the missile shield were carried through.

It was announced at the NATO summit that the defense shield was 'up and running' (See HERE and HERE)

Today news has come out that the Russian military has successfully launched a top secret advanced intercontinental ballistic missile. According to the Russians it is designed to counter the American antimissile shield currently being deployed in several regions

RT article
CNN article