Now with a minor update. News of the initial deployment of Russia’s first hypersonic glide vehicle (HGV), called Avangard, comes just a few months after China exhibited its first such weapon, the DF-17, in a parade. This is as a good an occasion as any to ask: what are HGVs good for? Why does Russia …
Archives for December 2019
A Decade of Regression and Dismantlement
by | December 30, 2019 | 2 Comments
Religious teaching of the week: “With deep conviction I wish once more to declare that the use of atomic energy for purposes of war is today, more than ever, a crime not only against the dignity of human beings but against any possible future for our common home.” – His Holiness Pope Francis Motto of …
The Decade of Factionalism and the Search for Icons
by | December 22, 2019 | 2 Comments
Lyric of the week: “Stay in my corner, babe Stay in my corner, please Stay in my corner, babe I will fight for you if you fight for me too” –Dan Auerbach and the Arcs The New York Times columnist Bret Stephens labels the past ten years of dashed hopes and damaged norms as the …
Why No Mushroom Clouds?
by | December 16, 2019 | 10 Comments
Quote of the week: “In order to know what is going to happen, one must know what has happened.” — Nicolo Machiavelli How have we managed to avoid mushroom clouds in warfare since 1945? Deterrence has to get credit, but not as much as deterrence strengtheners would have you believe. The possession of nuclear weapons …
The U.S.’s Post-INF Ballistic Missile
by | December 12, 2019 | No Comments
Launch a missile, get a pod, post-INF Treaty edition. On December 12, 2019, the U.S. Air Force and the Strategic Capabilities office tested a “prototype conventionally-configured, ground-launched ballistic missile” from Vandenberg AFB. The trio talks Twitter hot takes, the Strategic Capabilities Office, the future of U.S. missile procurement, and the future of intermediate-range ballistic missiles. …
North Korea’s Mysterious Engine Test
by | December 12, 2019 | No Comments
Sohae is open for business! The ACW Gang talks North Korea’s recent engine test at Sohae and marvels (again) at the power of satellite imagery. Was this test Kim’s “Christmas Gift” to Trump? Or just a stocking stuffer? Support us over at Patreon.com/acwpodcast!
The Future of Opens Skies
by | December 12, 2019 | No Comments
What is the future of the Open Skies Treaty? The Arms Control Wonk trio talk the Open Skies Treaty, the conspiracy theories that now permeate the debate about Russian aircraft, and why the treaty matters. Support us over at Patreon.com/acwpodcast!
Disruption and Regression
by | December 8, 2019 | No Comments
Quote of the week: “When Presidents become negotiators no escape routes are left for diplomacy. Concessions are irrevocable without dishonor. A stalemate stakes the personal prestige of the office; a mistake requires an admission of error. And since heads of government would not have chosen this career without a healthy dose of ego, negotiations can …
Retirement
by | December 2, 2019 | 2 Comments
Quote of the week: “I do not intend to hide in the taiga (the woods).” — Mikhail Gorbachev, last telephone conversation with George Bush before announcing his resignation on Christmas Day, 1991. After thirty years with Stimson, it’s time for me to retire. I’ll still be affiliated and keep my oar in the water, of …
