Communist Web Thursday 25th May 2000 9.30pm gmt Specter of US NMD Hovers Over Europe The National Missile Defense (NMD) system of the United States, like a specter, has recently hovered over the sky of Europe. The NATO Foreign Ministers Conference opened in Florence on May 24 decided to list it as a main topic for discussion at the conference. Observers say the NMD may bring far-reaching influence on the European- American relationship. US Wants to Set Up a "Magic Shield" In light of the situation revealed thus far, the US NMD will be built in three stages. In the first stage, it will deploy 100 intercept missiles in Alaska, being able to intercept more than 10 warheads. For this, the United States will improve its existing radar system, and at the same time build one more radar network, which is expected to be completed in 2007. In the second stage, the United States will continue to improve and upgrade its intercept and early warning abilities, so as to guard against the missile attack as a retaliatory measure. In the third stage, its early warning radar network will cover the whole country, the United States will deploy 200 intercept missiles, some of which will be deployed in the outer space. The missile defense system as a whole is flexible, which can be expanded at any time when deemed necessary. It is presently difficult to calculate how much is spent on the establishment of the missile defense system. US$15 billion has been allocated for defense purpose as revealed in the 2001-2005 budgetary report of the US Defense Department. The United States claims that deploying the NMD is aimed mainly at coping with three possible threats: First, accident occurs with the Sino-Russian missile launching system wherein missiles are inadvertently fired toward the United States; second, taking retaliatory measures, China and Russia would launch missiles toward the United States; Third, Iraq, Iran and other so-called hooligan countries, or international criminal groups would take the United States as the target of missile attack. Americans, both in power and not in power, admit that the possibility for the occurrence of the first two threats currently does not exist, but the possibility for the occurrence of the third threat is on the increase. However, people in the United States who oppose missile deployment point out that although theoretically the NMD can intercept ground-launched missile attack, it cannot bring real security for the United States. It cannot cope with sea-launched cruise missiles, still less... http://www.billkath.demon.co.uk/cw/specter/specter.html
