On November 16, AFPC held the tenth installment of its annual Capitol Hill conference on “Missile Defenses and American Security.” As in past years, the event brought together leading policymakers and scholars to explore the contemporary threat posed by ballistic missiles, and the state of U.S. Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) policy. Speakers at this year’s conference included: Congressman Michael Turner (R-OH-3), Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee’s Subcommittee on Strategic Forces; Dr. Mark Schneider, a senior scholar with the National Institute for Public Policy; Dr. Richard Weitz, Director of the Center for Political-Military Analysis at the Hudson Institute; and AFPC Senior Fellow in National Security Affairs Peter Huessy.
In their presentations, the speakers explored the perils and pitfalls of the New START treaty signed by Moscow and Washington last year; the impediments to real progress on missile defense cooperation with the Kremlin; and the current debate over the U.S. defense budget as it relates to American strategic capabilities and anti-missile initiatives. As in past years, the 2011 conference garnered considerable media attention, and was mentioned in both the Washington Times and the Global Security Newswire. Planning is now underway for the 2012 conference, which will take place later this year.
The inaugural edition (December 2011) of AFPC's new e-journal, the Defense Dossier, contains adaptations of the prepared remarks from the Congressman and three speakers. Please click here to read the articles.
