ABM Treaty:  Decision Expected Soon in Congressional Lawsuit

A decision is expected within a few weeks on a lawsuit filed by 32 members of the U.S. House of Representatives to stop the U.S. withdrawal from the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, The Nation reported Tuesday (see GSN, Aug. 11). 

The representatives, led by Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio), have claimed the Bush administration does not have the right to withdraw the United States from a treaty without first seeking the approval of Congress.  During the hearing, which began Oct. 31, Peter Weiss of the Lawyers Committee on Nuclear Policy argued that the U.S. Constitution describes a treaty as a “supreme law of the land,” and that the president is obligated to execute all laws.

“The president insists he has unilateral authority to terminate treaties and he can do so without Congress,” Kucinich said during a press conference held after the hearing.  “But nowhere in the Constitution does it say the president has the power to repeal laws,” he added.

“What is to prevent this or future presidents,” the representatives’ legal filing asks, “from terminating, by his or her sole decision, U.S. adherence to the North Atlantic Treaty (NATO), the Genocide Convention, the International Convention on Civil and Political Rights, various anti-terrorism conventions, the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, the Chemical and Biological Weapons Conventions or, for that matter, the charter of the United Nations?”

U.S. Deputy Assistant Attorney General Shannen Coffin, representing the White House, claimed that the plaintiffs were trying to improperly fight an issue in the legal system that they had already lost in the political arena.  The Justice Department’s legal filing in the case labels the lawmakers’ claims as “little more than a purely political attack” (Matt Bivens, The Nation, Nov. 5).

For further information, see:

ABM Treaty Text and Associated Documents (U.S. Defense Department)

U.S. Fact Sheet on Withdrawal from ABM Treaty

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Israel:  Washington and Tel Aviv Plan Joint Exercise

The United States and Israel are preparing to conduct a joint missile defense exercise in Israel in January, the Israeli Defense Ministry said today.

Both U.S. and Israeli air defense units are to participate in the exercise, with the United States expected to leave behind three upgraded Patriot air defense batteries when the exercise is completed, the Israeli newspaper Ha’aretz reported, according to the Associated Press (see GSN, Nov. 4).

The exercise is part of the continuing cooperation between the U.S. and Israeli militaries, Israeli Defense Ministry spokeswoman Rachel Ashkenazi said (Associated Press/Yahoo.com, Nov. 8).

Israel Shows Off Interceptors

Israel displayed its Arrow missile interceptors to reporters yesterday as part of an effort to deter Iraqi missile strikes in the event of war with the United States (see GSN, Oct. 7).

The Arrow is considered the most advanced missile defense system currently deployed in the world, according to the Associated Press.  The Israeli military has said the system will provide a better defense against Iraqi missile attacks than Israel had during the 1991 Gulf War.

“I’m sure we are better prepared today,” said Brig. Gen. Yair Dori, head of the Israeli air defense forces.  “In 1991, we had almost nothing.  Now we have a very active, robust defense,” he added.

Israel deployed its first Arrow battery two years ago at the Palmachim Air Force Base to defend Tel Aviv.  A second system has been deployed near the northern costal city of Hadera and a third is currently being constructed, AP reported.  Israel jointly developed the Arrow with the United States at a cost of about $2 billion.

Israeli military historian Martin van Creweld said that while the Arrow represented a significant technological advance, it is overly expensive for the level of threat Israel faces from Iraqi missile strikes.

“If it were me, I would rely on the threat of retaliation,” van Creweld said.  “There is no defense system that is 100 percent effective,” he added (Greg Myre, Associated Press/Boston Globe, Nov. 8).

For further information, see:

MDA Terminal Defense Segment

Federation of American Scientists Background on Arrow

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Japan:  Washington to Urge Tokyo to Develop System

U.S. defense officials planned today to urge Japan to construct its own missile defense system to counter threats from North Korean ballistic missiles, the Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun reported, according to CNN.com (see GSN, Nov. 5).

U.S. Undersecretary of Defense Douglas Feith is expected to promote the idea when he meets with Japanese Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba today, the newspaper reported, quoting a U.S. defense official.

Japan signed a memorandum of understanding with the United States on a joint missile defense study in 1998, following a North Korean missile test.  Japan has been hesitant to move the program into the development stage, however, because of cost concerns and fears of antagonizing China, CNN.com reported.

So far, Japan has focused its missile defense efforts on research, including examining the use of Aegis radar-equipped warships, according to CNN.com.  Such a system would use infrared sensors and low-cost interceptors to destroy enemy ballistic missiles.  The program is expected to cost more than $8 billion and would require Japan to review its constitution on exercising the right of self-defense, the newspaper reported (CNN.com, Nov. 8).

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U.S. Plans:  MDA Plans Sea-Based Midcourse Defense Intercept Test

The U.S. Missile Defense Agency said it plans to conduct an intercept test later this month of its sea-based midcourse missile defense project, one of several possible components of a U.S. missile defense system (see GSN, Sept. 3).

The test, currently scheduled for the week of Nov. 18, should enable technicians to evaluate how well the Raytheon Standard Missile 3 interceptor can destroy an ascending target missile, officials said.  U.S. Navy and Missile Defense Agency officials are also considering testing new software designed to guide the interceptor to a more precise point on the target missile, officials said.

The SM-3 interceptor has already performed successfully in two previous tests, according to Defense Daily (see GSN, June 14).  During the most recent test, the Aegis cruiser USS Lake Erie fired an SM-3 to successfully intercept an Aries ballistic missile target launched from a base in Hawaii (Kerry Gildea, Defense Daily, Nov. 6).

For further information, see:

MDA Basics of Missile Defense

MDA Missile Defense System

MDA Midcourse Defense Segment

Sea-Based Midcourse

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U.S. Plans:  Nuclear Study Continues Despite Congressional Ban

A U.S. ban on developing nuclear weapons for roles in missile defense will not stop a Defense Science Board study to examine the nuclear interceptor idea, Aerospace Daily reported last week (see GSN, Oct. 22).

The ban — which is included in the fiscal 2003 defense appropriations act signed into law last month by U.S. President George W. Bush — prohibits funding any phase of development of nuclear-tipped interceptors (see GSN, Oct. 24).  A defense official, however, said that the board’s advisory role would exempt it from the legislation.

The board “is strictly advisory, and DOD management can implement the board’s recommendations as deemed appropriate,” so the ban “will have no impact on the outcome or completion of the study,” the official said.

The study, which was commissioned in April, should be completed by the end of the year, the official said (Marc Selinger, Aerospace Daily, Oct. 31).

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U.S.-Russia:  Negotiators Near Joint Satellite Agreement

The United States and Russia are close to finalizing a memorandum of understanding on jointly building and operating two experimental satellites to track ballistic missile launches, Jane’s Defense Weekly reported today (see GSN, July 2).

Officials are developing the satellites through the Russian-American Observation Satellite (RAMOS) program created in 1992 to help facilitate U.S.-Russian missile defense cooperation.  One component of the project is to evaluate the effectiveness of tracking missile bodies as opposed to missile plumes, Jane’s reported.

“We are in active negotiations ... with the Russians over closing an agreement on the RAMOS program,” U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Ronald Kadish, director of the U.S. Missile Defense Agency, said last month.

The memorandum would create the legal framework for constructing the satellites — which officials expect to launch in 2007 and 2008 — and operating them for two to five years, according to Jane’s.

The United States plans to fund the more than $300 million project and to provide the necessary infrared sensors and other cameras, Jane’s reported.  Russia plans to build and launch the satellites and to provide control systems for a joint U.S.-Russian operations center to be located in Moscow (Michael Sirak, Jane’s Defense Weekly, Nov. 6).

For further information, see:

MDA Basics of Missile Defense

MDA Missile Defense System

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Pakistan:  Islamabad Prepares to Buy U.S. Missile Defense Technology

Pakistan plans to purchase a ballistic missile defense system from the United States for more than $1.5 billion, the Times of India reported today.

Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf recently approved the move.  The Defense Ministry reportedly plans to choose between the Patriot, the Nike Hercules and the Hawk missile systems.  Officials plan to deploy the missiles around key facilities and nuclear sites, the Times reported.

The Pakistani decision follows reports that regional rival India might acquire a Russian ballistic missile defense system.  The United States said it is enthusiastic to provide a missile defense system to prevent further missile proliferation in the area, according to the Times (Times of India, Nov. 5).

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U.S. Plans:  Officials, Analysts Disagree on Patriot Missile

The U.S. military does not plan to use the Patriot missile system as a primary defense in the event of war with Iraq because the system is unreliable, the Los Angeles Times reported Saturday.  Military officials, however, said that the Patriot is improved and has destroyed Scud missile targets in tests (see GSN, Oct. 15).

The Pentagon is focusing on finding Iraqi Scud missiles before they are launched and destroying them on the ground, analysts said.  Defense officials acknowledged that the Patriot Advance Capability 2 — which is currently in use — has limited worth, and the new model is having trouble in development (see GSN, Sept. 19; Paul Richter, Los Angeles Times, Nov. 2).

An official from the Missile Defense Agency said, however, that the Patriot has been successful against Scuds since the 1991 Gulf War.

“Since Desert Storm, the Missile Defense Agency has researched, developed and turned over to the Army more than 300 Patriot PAC-2 Guidance Enhanced Missiles, which have destroyed Scud missile targets in tests,” the official said.

The Army reportedly has 38 of the latest Patriot missiles, known as PAC-3, and Army officials said that it is ready to use (see GSN, Oct. 31).

“We have an operational capacity in PAC-3,” Army Secretary Thomas White said Thursday.

The U.S. Army has made “fairly remarkable” progress in addressing the ballistic missile threat as a whole, according to Army Space and Missile Defense Command chief, Lt. Gen. Joseph Cosumano (Ann Roosevelt, Defense Week, Nov. 4).

Other Pentagon officials have also defended the Patriot system.

“It’s been tested pretty rigorously, we’ve been at it a long time, and we’re ready to declare it’s a useful military system,” said U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Ronald Kadish, head of the Missile Defense Agency (see GSN, Nov. 1).

Israel, which codevelops the Arrow missile defense system with the United States, has expressed skepticism of the Patriot’s reliability.  Some private analysts also said they are less confident.

“The military is hopeful for what Patriot could do, but they clearly don’t intend to rely on it solely,” Brookings Institution scholar James Lindsay said.  The Patriot “is going to play only a supporting role” and the missile defense program as a whole “has been long on promises and short on products,” he said (Richter, Los Angeles Times).

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