U.S. BMD Delegation Arrives in Czech Republic, Russia Denounces
July 19, 2006 :: AFP :: News
A delegation of about 20 experts from the U.S. Missile Defense Agency have arrived in the Czech Republic to discuss the possible creation of a strategic missile defense site, reports the AFP. The delegation will visit at least three sites to examine whether they are suitable for the deployment of U.S. assets, including military zones at Jince, southwest of the capital Prague; Bolatice, in the southwest; and Libava, in the east of the country. According to Jan Pejsek, a spokesman for the Czech Defense Ministry, the visit is “the last stage in expert negotiations” before any political discussions on the matter. In recent days, the Czech media has said that Washington wants a final decision from Prague about the installation between now and the end of September. Poland and Hungary as also being considered as possible sites.
In a harsh denunciation of the U.S. visit, Colonel-General Nikolai Yesin, the former chief of staff of the Russian Strategic Rocket Forces, stated that Russia would be forced to respond if the U.S. were to deploy missile defense assets in Central Europe. As quoted by Interfax, Yesin vowed that Russia would “take appropriate countermeasures, and neutralize these systems in order to preserve its nuclear missile deterrence potential.” He added that he did believe the assertions of U.S. officials that the proposed BMD system would be deployed to defend against Iranian ICBMs. (Article, Link)
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Russia Launches SS-18 ICBM Carrying U.S. Civilian Satellite
July 12, 2006 :: AP :: News
Russia today launched a modified SS-18 Satan (RS-20 Voyevoda) ICBM, also known as the Dnepr carrier rocket, carrying an experimental U.S. civilian satellite known as Genesis I, reports the Strategic Missile Forces. The converted missile was launched from a silo in Russia’s southern Ural Mountains, and reached an altitude of over 500 km within minutes. The Genesis I is an experimental inflatable spacecraft funded by Robert Bigelow, a real estate magnate who is among several entrepreneurs attempting to develop a commercial space station. The Genesis I, at 4.2 m long, 1.2 m wide, and weighing 1,270 kg, is a one-third scale prototype of the commercial space station to which the company eventually hopes to transport its clients. Bigelow Aerospace plans to study its durability over the next five years. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Russia, Space-Based Systems, Testing - Foreign
» Missile details: SS-20
Study by Strategic Missile Troops on Topol-M Uses
July 5, 2006 :: Itar-Tass :: News
Russia’s Strategic Missile Troops are studying and developing new combat uses for the Topol-M (SS-27) intercontinental ballistic missile, reports Itar-Tass. According to Aleksandr Vovk, head of the information and public relations service of the SMT, the study and development of these new combat uses will be among the “main efforts” of Russia’s missile scientists in 2007. The Topol-M is said to be the core of Russia’s modernized missile arsenal, capable of hitting targets at a range of more than 10,000 km (6,000 miles). In recent months, Moscow has boasted of new defense-penetrating warheads, intended to zigzag on their approach to targets, which will be fitted on the Topol-M as well as its sea-based counterpart, the Bulava (SS-NX-30) SLBM. Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared that the new warheads will allow Russia to main a strategic balance of power with the U.S. (Article, Link)
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» Missile details: SS-N-6
Blank on Moscow’s Complacency Toward North Korea
June 24, 2006 :: Analysis
Stephen Blank, professor at the Strategic Studies Institute of the U.S. Army War College, notes that Russia has displayed “amazing insouciance” toward the possible North Korean long-range missile test. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov recently referred to warnings of a possible test as “purely speculative,” while Russian President Vladimir Putin’s aide, Igor Shuvalov, referred to North Korea’s actions as a “psychological test.” Blank documents the Kremlin’s only complaint to date, the fact that nobody has formally notified it of any potential North Korean missile launch. Among Russian experts, the consensus seems to be that Pyongyang’s launch preparations are nothing more than the usual manifestations of political blackmail to secure economic advantages, or perhaps jealousy over the concessions that Iran has been gaining due to its own nuclear program. Blank notes that such conclusions indicate a “widening sphere of discord with Washington” over the issues of North Korea and proliferation and the North Korean. “Under these circumstances,” he writes, “it is reasonable to ask whose psyche needs testing: those who proliferate or those who remain in denial about proliferation’s ultimate consequences for them and everyone else.” (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Analysis, North Korea, Proliferation, Russia
» Missile details: Tien Ma 1
Polish Analyst: Russia May Send S-300 Missiles to Iran via Belarus
June 7, 2006 :: BBC Worldwide Monitoring :: Analysis
Russia may export S-300 air/missile defense interceptors to Iran via Belarus, writes Polish analyst Piotr Koscinski on the Rzeczpospolita newspaper website. Koscinski cites the Russian publication Vzglyad, which published an article in April 2006 suggesting that Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenka himself would be the go-between for the transaction. The move would allow Russia to categorically deny the sale of these weapons to Iran, and maintain its image within the G-8 and on the world stage. According to Jane’s Intelligence Digest, an Iranian military delegation visited Minsk in January 2006, and negotiations surrounding the transfer of S-300 systems took place. According to Aleksandr Rakhimchyk, deputy director of the Moscow-based Institute of Military and Political Analysis, if Iran receives Russian-made S-300 systems, the U.S. would not be able to carry out a military operation against the Islamic Republic “without suffering significant losses.” (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Analysis, Former Soviet Republics, Iran, Proliferation, Russia
» Missile system details for: S-300P (SA-10 Grumble), S-300V (SA-12A Gladiator, SA-12B Giant)
Lavrov Blasts U.S. Conventional Missile, Other Plans
June 7, 2006 :: AP :: News
Today, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov strongly criticized U.S. plans to deploy conventional warheads on intercontinental ballistic missiles, warning that they posed a threat to strategic stability. “These plans could have a destabilizing effect, lower the nuclear threshold, have destructive consequences for nuclear nonproliferation regime and undermine strategic stability,” he told Russian lawmakers. Lavrov also said that U.S. plans to deploy missile defense elements in Poland or the Czech Republic pose a threat to Russia. “The reason they give is the protection of eastern European nations from Iranian ballistic missiles. For us, that means in the future a real possibility of intercepting Russian ballistic missiles,” he said. Lavrov added that these structures could be modernized for the covert deployment of ballistic missiles. (Article, Link)
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Belarus Deploying Missiles on Polish Border
June 1, 2006 :: News
Belarus has deployed Russian-made S-300 air/missile defense interceptors in the city of Brzesc near the Polish border, according to a report by Radio Polonia on May 31. Relations between the two countries have been tense ever since authorities in Belarus accused Poland of interfering in its internal affairs by supporting the Belarusian democratic opposition movement. In addition, Poland is a top choice for the Pentagon’s European missile defense site, which has angered Russian authorities. In response, Russia and Belarus signed a joint air defense pact, and Moscow began arranging for the deployment of S-300 units in Belarus, thus extending the effective range of Russia’s western air-defense by at least 150 km (90 miles), and the detection of air targets by 400 km (250 miles). Poland currently has no equivalent air/missile defense interceptors. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Deployment, Former Soviet Republics, Russia
» Missile system details for: S-300P (SA-10 Grumble), S-300V (SA-12A Gladiator, SA-12B Giant)
Solomonov: Russia Developing Laser and Kinetic Space-Based Weapons
May 26, 2006 :: Interfax :: News
Yuri Solomonov, chief designer of the Russian Topol-M (SS-27) and Bulava (SS-NX-30) missiles, hinted last week that Moscow has a secret space-based weapons program, according to a report from Interfax. Speaking at the Russian Academy of Sciences on May 16, Solomonov discussed new space-based x-ray lasers and kinetic weapons; mini-satellites that would deploy IT systems for monitoring and reacting to operational situations; and high-resolution advanced Earth satellite sensors capable of showing objects as small as half a meter in size from 400 to 500 km away in space. He added that Russia is developing these new space-based assets in order to maintain state security. (Link)
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Solomonov: Russia Might Also Convert ICBMs to Non-Nuclear Warheads
May 19, 2006 :: BBC Worldwide Monitoring :: News
Yuri Solomonov, chief designer of the Topol-M (SS-27) ICBM and Bulava (SS-NX-30) SLBM, announced today that Russia may convert some ICBMs to non-nuclear warheads. Speaking at a meeting of the Russian Academy of Sciences’ presidium in Moscow, Solomonov noted that in 2003 the U.S. transformed Ohio-class SSBNs into non-nuclear submarines, and argued that Russia should embrace the same approach. “Otherwise, an escalation in a conflict may result in destroying the current civilization,” he said. Solomonov added that a non-nuclear missile would be capable of inflicting the same damage as the Chernobyl accident.
Solomonov’s statements clashed with those of General Yuri Baluyevsky, chief of staff of the Russian Armed Forces, who on Thursday strongly criticized U.S. plans to use conventional warheads on ICBMs, claiming that they could endanger world stability. “It is a matter of international law, and without addressing it properly there can be no stability in the world,” he said. On May 11, Sergei Sobyanin, chief of staff to Russian President Vladimir Putin, expressed his concern as well, claiming that the U.S. is making an “irresponsible decision” that could provoke an inappropriate response from another nuclear power. (Article, Link)
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Solomonov: Russia and Kazakhstan Considering Joint Air-Launched Space-Vehicle
May 19, 2006 :: RIA-Novosti :: News
Russia and Kazakhstan are considering the development of a joint air-launched space vehicle, according to Yuri Solomonov, director and designer general of the Moscow Institute of Heat Engineering. At present, Orbital Sciences Corporation in the U.S. operates the world’s only aerospace system consisting of the L-1011 aircraft and the light-weight Pegasus-XL launch vehicle. However, Solomonov today stated that the Moscow Institute of Heat Engineering, along with Russia’s Aircraft Corporation MiG, could begin work on the Ishim air-launched space system by July 1, 2007.
As envisioned, the Ishim complex would include two MiG-31I aircraft, a three-stage launch vehicle, as well as an Ilyushin Il-76MD Midas surveillance plane. The MiG-31I would climb to an altitude of 15 to 18 km, fly 600 km toward a predetermined point, engage the launch vehicle, and attain a speed of 2,120-2,230 km/hour. The Ishim system would be able to place 160 kg payloads into 300 km circular orbits, and 60 kg payloads into 120 km orbits. Both MiG-31Is are currently deployed in Kazakhstan, which is financing the project.
The Ishim project is based on research and development conducted by the Soviet Union during the late 1980s and early 1990s as part of its “anti-SDI” program. Similar to the U.S. anti-satellite (ASAT) system for destroying enemy satellites, which used a number of air-launched missiles, the Soviet Mikoyan Design Bureau in 1987 converted two MiG-31 fighters into improvised missile carriers and designated them as MiG-31Ds. The second prototype MiG-31D was tested outside Moscow for several years, although the “anti-SDI” missile never progressed past the experimental stage. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Former Soviet Republics, Russia, Space-Based Systems
