Tag Archives: nuclear arsenal
Nuclear commander lost job after being caught playing fake poker chips
Downfall of Vice-Admiral Timothy Giardina is latest embarrassment for America’s missile men, amid low morale and a string of public scandals
By day, Vice-Admiral Timothy Giardina was one of the US Navy’s most senior figures – as deputy head of US Strategic Command, he was number two in command of America’s nuclear arsenal.
But by night, at the Horseshoe casino in Council Bluffs, Iowa, he was known as Navy Tim, a heavy gambler who was accused of making his own $500 poker chips and eventually banned.
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Documents unveiled under a Freedom of Information Act request depict him as an habitual poker player, spending more than 1,000 hours – or 15 hours per week – at the Horseshoe’s tables in the 18 months before being caught playing three phoney chips in June 2013.
Don’t mess with nuclear Russia, Putin says
LAKE SELIGER Russia (Reuters) – President Vladimir Putin said on Friday Russia’s armed forces, backed by its nuclear arsenal, were ready to meet any aggression, declaring at a pro-Kremlin youth camp that foreign states should understand: “It’s best not to mess with us.”
Putin told the assembly, on the banks of a lake near Moscow, the Russian takeover of Crimea in March was essential to save a largely Russian-speaking population from Ukrainian government violence. He said continued fighting in eastern Ukraine, where pro-Russian separatists launched an uprising in April, was the result of a refusal by Kiev to negotiate. Continue reading
U.S.: Russia Repeatedly Cheating on Nuclear Missile Treaty
“Treaties are like pie crusts, they are made to be broken” – Vladimir Lenin.
The stakes are high America’s nuclear arsenal is facing suicidal reductions while what’s to remain is already decades old. Lets also not forget the personnel in charge of the nuclear deterrent are facing burnout and removal for petty scandals, let alone witnessing unprecedented incidents where, for example, 50 missile silos go offline unexpectedly. Meanwhile, China and Russia are both modernizing their nuclear forces and will eventually attain first-strike capability. Don’t expect anything meaningful in terms of results to come out of the political ‘outrage’ that the government expresses whenever a new security threat is revealed, as past actions have time and time again been almost nothing in response — all bark and no bite.
The consequences for turning a blind eye will be irreversible and deadly. In 2013, America is still buying New Lies for Old.
For just a few additional examples of many, click the following links:
- The Network for America’s Nuclear Arsenal Is Falling Apart And Making The Air Force Uncomfortable
- Inside the Ring: Russia builds up, U.S. down
- China Conducts Another Mobile ICBM Test
- Confidential report lists U.S. weapons system designs compromised by Chinese cyberspies
- Two-Faced — Russia building up missile defenses while seeking to limit U.S. defenses
- The Nation’s ICBM Force: Increasingly Creaky Broken Missiles
- Russia to Create “Son of Satan” Missile
- The Warhead Gap
- Medvedev Says Russian Rearmament On Level With WWII
- Pentagon: Growing Threat as China Expands Missile Arsenal Development
Senior Obama administration officials informed congressional lawmakers in a closed-door 2012 briefing that Russia was not abiding by a bilateral arms control accord that bans the fielding of intermediate-range missiles, the Daily Beast reported on Tuesday.
The 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty required both Russia and the United States to eliminate all of their nuclear and non-nuclear ballistic and cruise missiles with maximum flight distances between roughly 300 miles and 3,400 miles. Russia’s testing of the SS-25 mobile intercontinental ballistic missile and of the new-model RS-26, optimized for penetrating missile defenses, may have raised the concerns about violating the accord’s range restrictions, according to the website. However, the alleged focus of the cheating remains secret. Continue reading
Britain’s struggles in nuclear race
The Trident report that is about to be unveiled is just the latest twist in what has been a long saga of Britain’s efforts to become and remain a member of the exclusive nuclear weapons club.
For much of the Cold War, the aim of successive British governments was to have a capability that mirrored in quality, if not in size, the arsenals of the superpowers.
The first stumbling block was the shock US decision to halt nuclear co-operation with Britain at the end of World War II. From being partners in the fabled Manhattan Project, Britain was left initially largely to its own (nuclear) devices. Continue reading
Deterring an Asia nuke race
It should be known that Russia also plays the game of pretending to reduce their nuclear stockpiles, often claiming their latest missiles are classified as anything but long-range. The only country playing honest is the United States, which has a false sense of security and has developed the illusion that total disarmament would be a demonstration of moral strength.
SINGAPORE – How many nuclear weapons and delivery systems does a country need as an effective deterrent against the threats of attack? Finding an acceptable balance is critically important in Asia, where four of the world’s nine nuclear-armed states are located.
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) reported in June that all four Asian nations with nuclear weapons — China, India, Pakistan and North Korea — appeared to be expanding their arsenals while the United States, Russia, France, Britain and Israel were either reducing them or holding the number static. Continue reading
Iran eyes 30 nuclear bombs a year: Israel minister
Essentially what he’s saying the Iranians are doing is building the means of capacity to be able to produce 30 bombs in one shot, instead of cranking out only one and declaring “we are a nuclear power”. They won’t cross the proverbial ‘red line’ until they’re sure they’ll have an arsenal large enough to where no one will dare taking the astronomical risk of retaliation by striking Iranian nuclear sites.
AFP – Iran is working round the clock to enlarge its nuclear infrastructure with the eventual aim of developing an industry capable of building up to 30 bombs a year, an Israeli minister charged on Monday.
Speaking to reporters in Jerusalem, Intelligence Minister Yuval Steinitz said Tehran was “very close” to crossing the red line laid out by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last year.
But he said it was biding its time and building uranium-enrichment facilities before making the final push for weapons-grade material. Continue reading
MONROE: The antiquation of America’s nuclear weapons
As mentioned many times here: As the list of America’s enemies continues to grow so do their threats and capacity to act upon them. The logical response would be to increase the would-be penalty for even coming close to showing intent in harming the United States. Yet, only what is counter-intuitive is the priority. Only in today’s times would people develop the illusion that total disarmament by the U.S. would be a demonstration of “moral strength.” Truth be told, there is nothing immoral about America preserving its military pre-eminence in the world.
In regards to a free world, when America (which is not untouchable) goes, so goes the rest of the free world. Any other Democratic countries are already too dependent on America for it’s security umbrella and will cave in to the demands of Russia and China (Shanghai Cooperation Organization — the new world war axis) after Washington gets hit with One Clenched Fist. It’s now 2013, a new year… and The United States is still consuming New Lies for Old.
Disarming while the world gears up a dangerous strategy
America is moving down a slippery slope, about to pass the point of no return. Our nuclear weapons capability is disintegrating. Here’s a quick assessment.
President Obama’s national goal — a world without nuclear weapons — is impossible and undesirable. Yet his administration is trying to lead the way into this fantasy land by making unilateral prohibitions, reductions, delays and cutbacks of all kinds. Today’s nuclear weapons policies — established by the Obama team in the Nuclear Posture Review — lead to nuclear weakness, rather than the nuclear strength that has kept us safe for over half a century. Continue reading
Will Israel Nuke Iran?
One does not go to Harvard, obtain a law degree, become a professor… then make 500 mistakes in a row in the course of almost (only) four years and get to claim incompetence. Having said this, to the contrary of having an incompetent in the White House as the author puts it, Obama comes off as quite purposeful and methodical — and it proves difficult to claim otherwise. Being called and believed to be an idiot makes for great cover, and grants more leverage in continuing to make more “mistakes”.
This latest split underscores the point of his well-thought planning. In this case, the purpose on reneging on partnership with Israel is (at least) four-fold:
1. Obama won’t be labeled a collaborator should Israel strike first.
2. Abandonment puts Israel, feeling its entire existence is at stake, in a dangerous position needing to strike first — therefore looking like the “bad guy” and the cause of all the worlds ills in the wake of destruction from the domino effect likely setting the entire Middle Eastern region on fire.
3. With the threat from Iran that an attack from Israel is the same as an attack from the United States, an Israeli first strike would indeed drag the US into the fold. The crucial point here is that the US will have pre-positioned itself in a “defensive” position that now justifies an American strike on Iran.
4. Whatever the catalyst for war may be, which seems to be right around the corner, Obama will have gained sufficient political leverage he has always wanted over the tiny Jewish state. As one article puts it, should he be re-elected — and with or without war, he will make them pay.
GOP candidate for President Mitt Romney released the following statement in response to the actions of Obama and the democratic party:
“It is unfortunate that the entire Democratic Party has embraced President Obama’s shameful refusal to acknowledge that Jerusalem is Israel’s capital. Four years of President Obama’s repeated attempts to create distance between the United States and our cherished ally have led the Democratic Party to remove from their platform an unequivocal acknowledgment of a simple reality. As president, I will restore our relationship with Israel and stand shoulder to shoulder with our close ally.”
So. The damage has been done and a price will be exacted.
Obama, in league with Comrade Putin of Russia, has made sure that Iran will acquire a nuclear weapon. In turn, they have also assured that Israel WILL attack Iran. The only question now, for this scribe, is whether Israel will feel the need to employ their substantial nuclear arsenal against the nuclear facilities of Iran. I mean—tactical or strategic nukes could be substituted by Israel for the MOP (Massive Ordnance Penetrator) deep depth bunker buster bombs the Obama Administration has refused them.
Far from deterring Israel, Obama has all but assured there WILL be a confrontation between Israel and Iran, which will, in all likelihood, envelope the entire Middle East and surely draw the US into the fray within days—if not hours.
This act of utter lunacy on the part of Obama—AND the Democratic Party—may very well be the spark that ignites the region in nuclear war.
Not since the Carter Administration has America had such an incompetent in the White House. His incompetence may now cost the lives of untold thousands, even hundreds of thousands, of Middle Easterners—as well as US military personnel.
It is a well known fact that a man, backed against a wall with is life in imminent danger, will fight more fiercely. He will use whatever means, anything he can lay his hands on, to defend and preserve his life. Israel is that man with his back against the wall fighting for his life.
Full article: Will Israel Nuke Iran? (Canada Free Press)
Canadian goods destined for Iran’s nuclear program slip through: Documents
OTTAWA — Despite repeated Harper-government boasting about imposing some of the toughest sanctions against Iran, newly released documents show that Canadian customs agents are stretched thin — and have been missing some shipments intended for Iran’s surreptitious nuclear program.
The documents raise questions about the effectiveness of Canadian sanctions — and whether efforts to prevent Iran from acquiring Canadian technology for its nuclear program are mere rhetoric given a lack of resources and personnel.
Canada and other Western allies have been steadily tightening sanctions against Iran in recent years over the country’s rampant human-rights abuses, ongoing support for terrorism and clandestine efforts to establish a nuclear program.
Its nuclear aspirations have been of particular concern because of fears it is trying to acquire a nuclear arsenal.
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The sanctions include prohibitions on the export of anything that could help Iran acquire nuclear weapons, including goods used in the petrochemical, oil and gas industries, as well as items that could be used to build ballistic missiles.
The Canada Border Services Agency is responsible for enforcing those prohibitions — and according to the documents, obtained by researcher Ken Rubin, there have been some successes.
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“These shipments were prohibited because they were to listed entities, involved prohibited (listed) goods, or involved prohibited (oil refining and gas liquefaction),” the paper reads. “Other seizes involve nuclear dual use goods.”
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The paper states that Canada is a target for “clandestine and illicit procurement activity since it is a recognized leader in many high technology sectors, (including nuclear, aerospace, chemical, electronics).”
But the same paper also made it clear the border agency is facing extreme resource limitations in enforcing sanctions against not just Iran, but the more than a dozen other countries against which Canada has placed export and trade restrictions.
“The number of CBSA staff dedicated to export control are very limited (approximately 53 staff members),” the paper reads. “The number of export shipments that the dedicated export teams must target and examine is overwhelming (8,000 to 10,000 per day).”
The paper said because of these limitations, “most of the efforts of CBSA’s export control program are focused on Iran and known transshipment areas,” though nuclear procurement networks from Syria, China and Pakistan are also operating in Canada.
Meanwhile, a secret memo recently prepared for senior CBSA managers outlines the increasing complexities in monitoring and preventing the export of Canadian technology and goods to Iran for suspected use in its nuclear program.
“Although Iranian procurement networks have been identified as working in Canada,” the memo reads, “intercepting export shipments is becoming increasingly difficult as the networks adapt to the increased scrutiny and sanctions enforcement (by) using more transshipment points and circuitous routes to ship their exports.”
And officials admitted some suspect shipments have slipped past them.
“Despite the latest rounds of international and Canadian sanctions,” the memo reads, “Iranian procurement agents have still been able to export items, albeit with more difficulty, greater costs, but effective nevertheless.”
Even when shipments have been stopped or seized, the documents note that prosecution is extremely difficult, though they add that “success can also be considered when procurement efforts are disrupted and/or delayed.”
Full article: Canadian goods destined for Iran’s nuclear program slip through: Documents (o.Canada.com)
Ready To Launch
China conducts rare flight test of new submarine-launched missile
China’s military conducted a flight test of a new submarine-launched ballistic missile last week, a launch that came a month after the test of a new multiple-warhead, ground-mobile missile, the Free Beacon has learned.
The flight test of the new JL-2 missile took place Thursday morning from a new Jin-class ballistic missile submarine on patrol in the Bohai Sea, near the coast of northeastern China west of the Korean peninsula, said U.S. officials.
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One official said the new JL-2 represents a “potential first strike” nuclear missile in China’s growing arsenal.
The submarine missile firing followed the July 24 test launch of China’s new DF-41 road-mobile ICBM that is assessed to carry multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicles, or MIRVs.
The July 24 DF-41 test was the first of the new long-range ICBM that until the test had been shrouded in secrecy.
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In addition to the JL-2, a variant of the DF-31 mobile missile, the new strategic weapons include three types of road-mobile ICBMs—DF-31, DF-31A, and DF-41—along with several intermediate and medium-range missiles and hundreds of short-range missiles that can be armed with both conventional and nuclear warheads. The Chinese also are modernizing their fleet of Russian-design strategic bombers.
By contrast, the Obama administration has been seeking to reduce the role of nuclear weapons in U.S. defense strategy.
The administration, according to Republicans in Congress, also appears to be going back on promises made to the Senate in 2010 to spend billions of dollars to upgrade aging U.S. strategic nuclear forces and infrastructure.
The former head of Russia’s strategic rocket forces stated in an article published in May that China’s nuclear arsenal could have as many 3,000 warheads—far more than the 300 to 400 warheads estimated by U.S. intelligence agencies.
Full article: Ready To Launch (Washington Free Beacon)
Israel gets 4th nuke-capable German submarine
The Dolphin-type military submarine is one of six Israel has ordered from Germany, which subsidizes the submarines. Each submarine costs half a billion dollars. The sub was presented to Israeli officials in Hamburg, Germany, on Thursday and is expected to arrive in Israel in 2013, following final tests.
Israel is already in possession of three other German-made Dolphin-class submarines capable of carrying nuclear-tipped missiles. However, there is no evidence that Israel has armed them with such weapons and the country has never confirmed reports that it possesses a nuclear arsenal.
Full article: Israel gets 4th nuke-capable German submarine (Associated Press)
Iran’s supreme leader embraced concept of nuclear arms, archival document suggests
According to an internal U.N. document, Khamenei embraced the concept of an Iranian nuclear bomb during a meeting of the country’s top leadership more than two decades ago, saying nuclear weapons were essential for preserving Iran’s Islamic Revolution.
The 2009 document, prepared for the International Atomic Energy Agency, is a collection of statements made by Iranian leaders about nuclear weapons, as gleaned from the nuclear watchdog’s intelligence sources. It cites an April 1984 meeting in which Khamenei allegedly endorsed a decision by then-leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini to launch a secret nuclear weapons program.
“According to Ayatollah Khamenei, this was the only way to secure the very essence of the Islamic Revolution from the schemes of its enemies … and to prepare it for the emergence of Imam Mahdi,” states the IAEA document, which was obtained by the Institute for Science and International Security, a Washington-based nonprofit group that analyzes nuclear weapons programs. In Shiite Islam, “Imam Mahdi” is the prophesied 12th Imam who will purge the world of evil in humanity’s last days.
Khamenei allegedly embraced the idea of an Iranian nuclear arsenal that would “serve Iran as a deterrent in the hands of God’s soldiers,” the IAEA memo states.
Full article: Iran’s supreme leader embraced concept of nuclear arms, archival document suggests (Iran Focus)
Former Islamic Insider Offers Warning
Last week I quoted from a book by Reza Kahlili, A Time to Betray. This week I had a chance to speak with Mr. Kahlili by phone, and ask him about the Iran crisis. As a former CIA operative who worked inside the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, he understands the strengths and weaknesses of the Islamic Republic. He knows the Islamist mindset, and the errors that plague U.S. policy.
I asked Mr. Kahlili whether he thought a preemptive strike against Iran was a good idea. “The question is complex,” he answered. “You should never have allowed Iran to become what it is today. You have missed opportunity after opportunity.”
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Perhaps it is no accident we are in such a difficult position today. Reza Kahlili is not alone in suggesting that the West has used bad judgment and shown poor leadership regarding Iran. To survive intact, our civilization must do better. We have deluded ourselves long enough. We have refused to accept that our enemies are enemies, that they intend our destruction. The hour is late, and time is running out.
Full article: Former Islamic Insider Offers Warning (JR Nyquist)
Russia May Boost Nuclear Potential – Deputy Defense Min.
Russia may have to boost its nuclear potential in future amid emerging nuclear proliferation threats, Anatoly Antonov, Russia’s deputy defense minister and a negotiator on the European missile shield, said on Monday.
“New challenges emerge, including missile and nuclear proliferation. Look at how unstable the situation in the Middle East is. That’s why Russia’s military doctrine envisages the use of nuclear weapons in specific cases. I do not rule out than under certain circumstances we will have to boost, not cut, our nuclear arsenal,” Antonov said in an interview with the Kommersant daily.
Full article: Russia May Boost Nuclear Potential – Deputy Defense Min. (Ria Novosti)
Global Geopolitics 