Missile Defense Briefing Report: N0.302

MOSCOW, ASTANA TO MERGE MISSILE DEFENSES
Russia and Kazakhstan have tentatively agreed to a joint missile defense system that will most likely entail Russia exporting several of its S-300 missile defense systems to the Central Asian state. The agreement will be signed next year, and once in effect will compel the Kazakh Air Force to defend Russian airspace in close proximity to the countries’ border if it is attacked. This development is not without precedent; Russia already enjoys similar border protection agreements with Armenia and Belarus. (Radio Free Europe, July 11, 2012)

SANCTIONS AND IRAN’S MISSILE PROGRAM
Recent and ongoing sanctions by the United States and European Union may not have affected Iran’s drive for a nuclear program, but they are beginning to affect Iran’s ability to produce medium and long range missiles and missile fuel. That, at least, is the conclusion of a new study by London’s prestigious International Institute for Strategic Studies. Since the start of the Iraq-Iran War, the report explains, the Iranian regime has sought to augment its military strength by developing liquid and solid-fueled missiles—with the focus recently overwhelmingly on solid fuel. It has done so both by importing from other countries and by developing its own missile capabilities. But, the study says, sanctions have made it difficult for Iran to acquire the special mixture of materials necessary to make solid fuel for its ballistic missiles, something which explains the relative decline in the number of missile tests carried out by the Iranian regime in recent months.

U.S. lawmakers, however, aren’t so sure. Members of the Republican leadership in the House Armed Services Committee is demanding that Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta declassify and make available to Congress relevant updates on Iran’s Intercontinental Ballistic Missile Program. The Congressmen, Michael Turner of Ohio and Howard “Buck” McKeon of California, want to know this information before they work on reappropriating $8.2 billion in fiscal 2012 funds destined for the Pentagon. Turner and McKeon specifically desire information on Iran’s capability and intent of developing Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs). The latest open-source intelligence on the matter estimates that Iran would be capable of flight testing an ICBM by 2015. (IISS, July 2012; Bloomberg, July 16, 2012)

U.S. ERECTS MISSILE DEFENSES IN QATAR
As part of its efforts to bolster regional defenses against Iran’s strategic arsenal, the United States is in the process of constructing a new missile defense radar system in Qatar. The system parallels the early warning radars already in existence in both Israel and Turkey. It might also serve as a harbinger of things to come; U.S. Central Command, the U.S. combatant command responsible for the Middle East, claims that it wishes to build the first “Terminal High Altitude Area Defense” systems in the Middle East, possibly in the United Arab Emirates. (Doha Al Jazeera, July 18, 2012)

WANTED: UPGRADES TO U.S. NUKES
Eight senators from both sides of the political aisle have appealed to Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta to spend some $300 million to modernize America’s aging nuclear missiles. The lawmakers claim that the U.S. thus far has failed to modernize its weapons in accordance with an agreement hammered out with the Obama administration in late 2010—under which Republican lawmakers acceded to the New START treaty with Russia in exchange for upgrades to the U.S. nuclear stockpile. Of particular concern is the construction of a new chemical facility that would provide support for nuclear endeavors. The senators believe such a program to be necessary to “maintain the nuclear deterrent.” (Washington Free Beacon, July 18, 2012)

KUWAIT SEEKS PAC-3
As required by law, the Pentagon’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency has informed Congress of a $4.2 billion arms sale to Kuwait. The deal involves some sixty Patriot Advanced Capability (PAC-3) missiles and many other missile defense-related items. Lockheed Martin and Raytheon are the primary contractors in the agreement. The purchase is expected to augment the security of Kuwait, one of the Persian Gulf’s more stable states—and an important regional ally of the U.S. The potential sale of the PAC-3 missiles will likewise expand interoperability between Kuwait and U.S. forces. (Defense-Aerospace.com, July 20, 2012)