Bill Gertz, reporting with Rowan Scarborough in his latest Inside the Ring column, states: China has deployed a brigade of up to eight new road-mobile DF-31 long-range missiles. That’s the latest assessment from the authoritative International Institute for Strategic Studies publication, “The Military Balance.” [snip] The assessment that eight DF-31s are operational goes beyond the …
Saving Space Based Interceptors?
by | 2005-01-21 | No Comments
Zapping Space-Based Interceptors? Not so fast. MDA Director Henry “Trey” Obering wants to keep as many missile defense programs alive as possible, including programs for space-based missile defense interceptors, despite looming budget cuts. With the Missile Defense Agency facing a total program cut of $ 5 billion over FY 2006-2011, informed speculation centered on the …
How Many Chinese Nuclear Weapons Redux 3
by | 2005-01-20 | No Comments
The Chinese government has now made a little noticed step toward nuclear transparency. The Chinese Foreign Ministry, in April 2004, released a fact sheet entitled China: Nuclear Disarmament and Reduction … that states: Among the nuclear-weapon states, China has performed the least number of nuclear tests and possesses the smallest nuclear arsenal. Not more than …
William Arkin's Code Names
by | 2005-01-20 | 1 Comment
Bill Arkin has published a new book, Code Names: Deciphering U.S. Military Plans, Programs and Operations in the 9/11 World that “identifies more than 3,000 code names and details the plans and missions for which they stand.” General Charles Horner, commander of coalition air forces in Operation Desert Storm, gives the book some … um …
