Russian Weapons Circumvent New START Arms Pact

Gen. John Hyten / Getty Images

 

Stratcom wants nuclear torpedo, advanced missiles covered if New START extended

The general in charge of U.S. nuclear forces warned Tuesday that Russia is building three new strategic weapons that circumvent the limits of the New START arms treaty.

Air Force Gen. John Hyten, commander of the Omaha-based Strategic Command, told Congress he favors requiring limits on the new weapons in any extension of the 2010 strategic arms accord.

Russia Touts “Unlimited Range” Of New Nuclear Cruise Missile As INF Unravels

 

Following the dramatic US withdrawal from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) within the last month and amidst continuing tit-for-tat accusations between Moscow and Washington since then, which even appears to have imperiled the future of the New START treaty, Russia is aggressively touting its new nuclear cruise missile, the 9M730 Burevestnik (or “Storm Petrel”), which Russian media reports say has entered the final stage of testing and development. 

Russia’s nuclear-capable underwater drone to be deployed

The Poseidon multipurpose ocean system in a screenshot from a video provided by the Russian Defense Ministry. Photo: AFP/Ministry of defence of the Russian Federation

 

Skeptics play down the threat posed by Moscow’s latest weapon, which is set to be used in the Pacific

Russia is ready to deploy nuclear-capable Poseidon underwater drones in the Pacific area as part of its oceanic multi-purpose system, Russian state media have reported.

Given the poor state of relations between the Kremlin and the United States, the American superpower is evidently the primary target of new Russian weaponry, but the deployment of Poseidon could eventually become an issue for China as well.

Putin warns of a new ‘arms race’

Russia has half of America thinking that America itself is sparking the arms race, when in fact it’s been Russia that has made every effort to militarize and modernize weaponry that has been a blatant breach of treaties for decades. The U.S. hasn’t even had a new nuclear weapon deployed since the early 90’s and it’s ‘Star Wars’ program was scrapped after Reagan had left office. Now we have a Russian (as well as Chinese) space warfare program being deployed as we speak, as well as new nuclear weapons. It’s been well documented in the public domain for decades. Donald Trump is merely reacting to the unfairness and trying to maintain the U.S. position of supremacy. The Russians are quite masterful in the art of manipulation, especially public opinion.

 

President Vladimir Putin says Russia will respond “in kind” if the United States places new missiles on European soil (AFP Photo/Sergei CHIRIKOV)

 

Moscow (AFP) – President Vladimir Putin warned Wednesday of a new arms race if America pulls out of weapons treaties, and said Russia would respond “in kind” to any new US missiles placed on European soil.

At the weekend, US President Donald Trump sparked concerns globally when he said he would ditch a Cold War-era nuclear weapons treaty, the three-decade-old Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF).

Trump To Pull U.S. Out Of 1987 Nuclear Weapons Treaty With Russia

 

As Russia continues to outmaneuver the US by developing new ballistic missiles like the 9M729 ground-launched cruise missile, as well as hypersonic weapons capable of carrying a nuclear payload, President Trump said Saturday that he plans to abandon a 1987 arms-control treaty that has (on paper, at least) prohibited the US and Russia from deploying intermediate-range nuclear missiles as Russia has continued to “repeatedly violate” its terms according to the president, the Associated Press reports.

“We’re not going to let them violate a nuclear agreement,” Trump said Saturday after a campaign rally in Elko, Nevada. “We’re going to terminate the agreement.”

Russia Sharply Expanding Nuclear Arsenal, Upgrading Underground Facilities

Russian President Vladimir Putin / Getty Images

 

Pentagon to boost U.S. weapons under nuclear posture review

Russia is aggressively building up its nuclear forces and is expected to deploy a total force of 8,000 warheads by 2026 along with modernizing deep underground bunkers, according to Pentagon officials.

The 8,000 warheads will include both large strategic warheads and thousands of new low-yield and very low-yield warheads to circumvent arms treaty limits and support Moscow’s new doctrine of using nuclear arms early in any conflict.

In addition to expanding its warheads, Russia also is fortifying underground facilities for command and control during a nuclear conflict.

Uranium One and New START

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov finalized the New START treaty in February 2011. Last month, the Uranium One case resurfaced when news reports revealed that the FBI apparently covered up information about illegal Russian attempts to lobby Mrs. Clinton. (Associated Press/File) Photo by: Jens Meyer

 

Some U.S. national security officials are urging an investigation of the burgeoning Uranium One scandal to focus on whether the New START arms treaty with Russia was compromised by Moscow payoffs and not just by Obama administration policies that sought to curry favor with the Kremlin.

The Obama team, through the Treasury Department-led Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), approved the 2010 sale of 51 percent of Canada-based Uranium One to JSC Atomredmetzoloto, or ARMZ, the mining arm of Rosatom, the Russian state nuclear energy agency. The merger gave Russia control of some 20 percent of U.S. uranium extraction capability.

In 2015, it was revealed that nine lobbyists for Uranium One paid the Clinton Foundation, Bill and Hillary Clinton’s charitable organization, $145 million before, during and after the deal was approved. Bill Clinton also traveled to Moscow, where he was paid $500,000 by a Russian government-linked bank for a speech.

Los Alamos Expert: U.S. Unable to Conduct Nuclear Tests

Russia and China have advanced in nuclear tech and deployed new nukes, whereas the United States hasn’t deployed anything since the Minuteman III in the early 1990’s… and now, can’t even test. Russia has in fact surpassed the U.S. with its nuclear arsenal.

The U.S. nuclear arsenal is still ran off 70’s floppy disc era technology, too (See also HERE).

This is your America today.

This is how crippled America has become… and the public is too busy following the Kardashians to pay attention, know what’s going on.

 

Test site / Los Alamos National Laboratory

 

Test readiness shortfalls include lack of people, infrastructure to gauge reliability of nuclear arms

The United States is losing the capability to conduct underground nuclear tests that could be needed in the future to gauge the reliability of the nuclear arsenal.

According to John C. Hopkins, former head of nuclear testing at Los Alamos National Laboratory, the Energy Department needs to bolster testing capabilities that could be needed in a future national emergency.

“With every day that passes, the United States grows more out of practice and out of resources—including the most important resource: people with experience—that are critical to nuclear testing,” Hopkins stated in an article published Wednesday in the Los Alamos newsletter.

Russia Adds Hundreds of Warheads Under Nuclear Treaty

61 new warheads since April under New START

Russia increased its deployed nuclear warheads over the past six months under a strategic arms reduction treaty as U.S. nuclear warhead stocks declined sharply, according to the State Department.

During the same period, the United States cut its deployed nuclear warheads by 114, increasing the disparity between the two nuclear powers.

Russia’s warhead increases since 2011 suggest Moscow does not intend to cut its nuclear forces and will abandon the New START arms accord as part of a major nuclear buildup.

Russia Building New Underground Nuclear Command Posts

U.S. intelligence detects dozens of hardened bunkers for leaders

Russia is building large numbers of underground nuclear command bunkers in the latest sign Moscow is moving ahead with a major strategic forces modernization program.

U.S. intelligence officials said construction has been underway for several years on “dozens” of underground bunkers in Moscow and around the country.

Disclosure of the underground command bunkers comes as Army Gen. Curtis Scaparrotti, commander of U.S. European Command, warned recently that Russia has adopted a nuclear use doctrine he called “alarming.”

White House Mulls Big Nuclear Policy Changes, and Lawmakers Speak Up

With this nuclear policy change, it means no first-strike capability. No first-strike capability means that America’s enemies would be able to nuke America first before it would be able to decide to retaliate. It works great for everyone but America.

 

 

WASHINGTON — As the clock ticks down on the final term of US President Barack Obama, who is believed to be reviewing a potential disarmament agenda for his last months in office, there has been a flurry of activity on Capitol Hill to try to influence the internal debate.

Lawmakers both pro and con for nuclear modernization have fired off dueling letters—the latest a July 20 letter to Obama from five key House Democrats who want to scale back standing nuclear modernization plans.

Obama said to plan controversial nuclear weapons executive order during last days in office

Taking away America’s “no first use” policy means that America has to be nuked first before it can respond with tactical nuclear weapons itself.

 

As he nears the end of his second term, U.S. President Barack Obama is reportedly preparing a series of executive orders that officials said would weaken the U.S. nuclear deterrent.

Obama, in meetings with national security Cabinet members known as the Principals Committee, reviewed his options for executive actions on nuclear policy. None of the options require formal congressional approval.

Russians Violating New START Arms Treaty

Russia enters agreements not to abide by them, but to force America to abide by them. Russia, as a treaty cheat, realizes Americas thinking will not allow itself to take any path but the good and honest one. Therefore Russia knows it can keep cheating on arms treaties while America takes notice and attempts to only diplomatically reign it in through angry letters and warnings.

Until America realizes Russia absolutely cannot be trusted, this will be repeated until grave consequences unfold.

 

“Treaties are like pie crusts, they are made to be broken”

– Vladimir Lenin.

 

Moscow tried to deceive inspectors on missile cuts, U.S. says

U.S. nuclear arms inspectors recently discovered that Russia is violating the New START arms treaty by improperly eliminating SS-25 mobile missiles, American defense officials said.

The violations were discovered during an on-site inspection carried out in Russia in April, said officials familiar with details of the inspection.

Russia Deployed Over 150 New Warheads in Past Year

U.S. cut warheads by 57 in same period

Russia deployed 153 strategic nuclear warheads over the past year under the New START arms treaty while the U.S. military pared its nuclear forces by 57 warheads, according to State Department figures released last week.

The increase in warheads by Moscow appears to be part of Moscow’s large-scale strategic nuclear forces buildup.

Defense officials disclosed last week that Russia is doubling the number of strategic nuclear warheads and remains over the 1,550 warhead limit set by the 2010 New START arms treaty.

Russia Doubling Nuclear Warheads

New multiple-warhead missiles to break arms treaty limit

Russia is doubling the number of its strategic nuclear warheads on new missiles by deploying multiple reentry vehicles that have put Moscow over the limit set by the New START arms treaty, according to Pentagon officials.

A recent intelligence assessment of the Russian strategic warhead buildup shows that the increase is the result of the addition of multiple, independently targetable reentry vehicles, or MIRVs, on recently deployed road-mobile SS-27 and submarine-launched SS-N-32 missiles, said officials familiar with reports of the buildup.

“The Russians are doubling their warhead output,” said one official. “They will be exceeding the New START [arms treaty] levels because of MIRVing these new systems.”