By Richard Weitz In its 2012 annual report to Congress, the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission noted rapid improvements in China’s nuclear forces. The Commission estimates that China is possibly within two years of attaining a genuine “nuclear triad,” consisting of land-based ballistic missiles, submarine-launched ballistic missiles, and air-dropped…
2013-01-09 by Lt. General (Retired) David Deptula Whatever happens with sequestration, Pentagon planners are now struggling to fit the services’ myriad programs under a reduced budget topline. Advocates point to their particular project or personnel as vital to US warfighting capacity. Technologists point to new capabilities that will allow us…
2013-01-03 By Richard Weitz In discussions outside Paris, members of the Afghan Taliban insurgency met with representatives of the Afghan government and its peaceful opposition to discuss how their war might end. Although not formal negotiations, they seemed to indicate greater Taliban interest than previously in a peace treaty. Yet, they…
[slidepress gallery='general-jacoby'] 2013-01-02 Arctic warming is creating a new Arctic environment and with it a new strategic situation. Changes are coming over time, but the strategic trajectories are very clear. New transportation routes, new resources, new security challenges and new defense dynamics are inevitable. And very little of this is at…
2013-01-02 By Richard Weitz Since the beginning of Syria’s uprising against the Assad regime, there have been worries that Lebanon’s Hezbollah could obtain and use some of Syria’s chemical weapons. This could happen either through the Assad regime’s deliberately transferring the chemical weapons to Hezbollah or through Hezbollah’s seizing them in…
2012-12-30 By Richard Weitz “Today, only Russia and China have the capability to conduct a large-scale ballistic missile attack on the territory of the United States, but this is very unlikely and not the focus of U.S. BMD,” the 2010 U.S. Ballistic Missile Defense Review explains. “Both Russia and China have…
2012-12-23 by Richard Weitz In South Korea’s 18th presidential election, held on December 19, Park Geun-hye of the governing Saenuri (New Frontier) Party defeated Moon Jae-in of the opposition Democratic United Party. Park’s inauguration is scheduled for February 25, when she will succeed President Lee Myung-bak. Park faces many domestic and…
2012-12-21 by Richard McCormack A substantial percentage of companies that specialize in the space industry are on the brink of extinction. According to the initial findings of an industry survey conducted by the federal government of 1,087 companies in the space supply chain, 38 percent said they would be insolvent…
