By David Ruppe
Global Security Newswire

WASHINGTON — While the world focused on U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell’s U.N. presentation yesterday, the British Defense Ministry formally announced it would approve a U.S. request to upgrade a missile-tracking radar on British soil that would become a major element of the U.S. national missile defense system (see GSN, Jan. 29). 

Defense Secretary Geoffrey Hoon sent a letter to the House of Commons announcing he would reply favorably yesterday to the request, made by U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld in December (see GSN, Dec. 16, 2002).

The United States now has permission to upgrade the radar at the Fylingdales air base so it can track future long-range ballistic missile attacks from the Middle East.  The Bush administration has sought the improvement as part of its effort to develop and deploy a national missile defense system. 

U.S. officials and experts have said the upgraded radar would be key for using U.S. missile defense capabilities to defend against an attack from the Middle East.  Last year, the U.S. intelligence community reported that potential aggressors Iran, and Iraq if free of current U.N. sanctions, could develop long-range missiles in as little as 13 years.

“Stinks of Hypocrisy”

Supporters and opponents of the British decision alike criticized the timing of the announcement.

“They stifled debate on missile defense until the Christmas holidays, and then rushed out the policy through with the minimum of debate,” said shadow defense secretary Bernard Jenkins, a missile defense proponent quoted by the BBC.

“The whole process stinks of hypocrisy,” he said.

The House of Commons Defense Committee in a report last week approved allowing the upgrade, but criticized the government for announcing support for the upgrade before the public deliberations had run full course.

The committee rushed production of the report to ensure its views were known in anticipation of quick government approval.

“Having followed military decision-making in the U.K. for 20 years, I can’t say I am surprised that this announcement has been sneaked out while the media's attention is focused on Secretary of State Powell’s testimony before the Security Council,” said analyst Nigel Chamberlain, from the British American Security Information Council.

“Defense Secretary Hoon has managed to anger the Defense Committee, treat his parliamentary colleagues with a degree of contempt and ignore the British electorate by prevaricating for two years and then compressing what passes for consultation into two months, including a holiday period,” he said.

Hoon in his statement today said, “I am now satisfied that we have been able to take fully into account the views of all interested parties in coming to a decision.”

Ministry spokeswoman Melissa Maynard said “there is no significance in the time” of the announcement.

“I’m afraid just that it needs to be done,” she said.

Chamberlain said the ministry next must determine whether it needs permission from the local planning authorities for the upgrade, and said “they feel quite confident in that they will not need permission.”

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