8/18/2019 THAAD

1/3

HEADLINE = THAAD: Born to fail but guaranteed to spark an arms race

STA! = America"s plan to s#oot do$n ballistic missiles seconds before impact is

not onl% fraug#t $it# a great degree of risk& but it is forcing ot#er countries to

 'oin an un$innable race(

Hitting an incoming missile $it# a missile #as been likened to #itting a bullet $it#

a bullet( T#at is $#at America"s Terminal Hig# Altitude Area Defence )THAAD*

proposes to do( T#e son of Star +ars& THAAD is an anti,ballistic missile )AB-*

s%stem designed to s#oot do$n ballistic missiles in t#eir terminal p#ase . or

moments before t#e% #it ground /ero( Ho$e0er& e1perts #a0e called it impossible

science because it $orks onl% in t#e minds of mad scientists(

 T#e 2remlin $ill ne0er sa% t#is& but t#e ussians kno$ t#at in realit% t#e 3S is

burning billions of dollars in a futile 4uest to beat p#%sics( As earl% as 5678&senior ussian scientists suc# as oald Sagdee0 #ad assured -osco$ t#at Star

+ars $as p#one% science(

In 99 t#e American !#%sical Societ% asked t#e 3S to dela% deplo%ment of a

missile defence s%stem until it $as demonstrated to $ork against realistic

t#reats( T#irt% %ears earlier& t#e p#%sics communit% in t#e 3S pointed out t#at

e1isting and proposed missile defence s%stems $ere not e;ecti0e against

ussia"s o;ensi0e countermeasures(

So $#% does ussia continue to oppose American plans to place AB- s%stems

like THAAD near its territor% . old +ar ga0e rise to a fountain of acron%ms& but none is more memorable

t#an -AD or mutuall% assured destruction( +#at it means is t#at $it#out t#e

means to interdict eac# ot#er"s missiles& ussia and t#e 3S are assured of -AD if 

eit#er of t#em launc#es a nuclear #ina& Nort# 2orea and ussia(

!lus it $ill certainl% pull in India and @apan& resulting in a cra/% arms race(

But doesn’t Israel’s Iron Dome work?

8/18/2019 THAAD

2/3

Sure it does . against pun% rockets B-& in contrast& #as a 0elocit% of 9(

miles per second in boost p#ase and a terminal,p#ase 0elocit% of around (Fmiles per second(G

Cne of t#e reasons Israel"s Iron Dome s%stem $orks is because t#e insurgents it

defends against can"t #url t#ousands of missiles into Israeli airspace in a matter

of minutes( E0en so& it"s more of a ps%c#ological protecti0e measure t#an an

e;ecti0e one(G

 T#ere are ot#er reasons $#% THAAD is a $eapon guaranteed to fail:

Kill vs spill

 T#e missile de0eloped for THAAD does not carr% an e1plosi0e $ar#ead( Instead it

relies on t#e kinetic energ% of t#e impact to destro% t#e incoming missile( T#e

reasoning is t#at a kinetic #it minimises t#e risk of an e1ploding con0entional

$ar#ead( !lus& nuclear $ar#eads are programmed to e1plode at certain altitudes

so t#e% #opefull% $ont e1plode upon a kinetic #it(

But #ere"s t#e rub . c#emical or biological $ar#eads ma% disintegrate or e1plode

and pose a risk of contaminating t#e en0ironment( T#e result of a kinetic #it is

t#at instead of t#e cit% centre& t#e missile ma% fall on t#e outskirts( T#is is not a

0er% comforting t#oug#t for suburbanites(

Sidewinding missiles

lder ussian missiles $ere famous for t#eir brute po$er( T#e SS,57 )codenamed

Satan b% NAT* $eig#s a gargantuan 96& kg( T#e #ig#l% accurate ussian

missile can not onl% penetrate and destro% American missile silos& $#ic# are

#ardened to F psi& but its o$n silos are #ardened to psi&

)#ttp:$$$(fas(orgnukeguiderussiaicbmr,Fm(#tm * making t#e missile all but

impregnable(

But $#at t#e ussians #a0e added to t#e missile is simpl% stupendous( ?or a

missile of its $eig#t and lengt# )59 feet* it can side$ind& t#at is& during its

terminal p#ase it can mo0e in a series of S,s#aped cur0es to e0ade antimissile

defences( !lus& its micro,electronics are #ardened to function e0en under nuclear

attack( T#is means it can t#eoreticall% burn t#roug# a pro1imit% e1plosion of an

AB- $ar#ead(

-odern ussian missiles suc# as t#e Bula0a are most likel% to #a0e side$inding

capabilit%( ussia"s& ne$est I>B-& t#e S,9 Sarmat& $ill soon 'oin t#e Strategic

-issile ?orce( It #as been dubbed t#e Cmissile defence killerG for its maneu0ering

c#aracteristics( CNeit#er current nor future American missile defence s%stems

$ill be able to pre0ent t#at missile from #itting a target dead on&G said ussian

http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/182175-the-united-states-missile-defense-system-will-never-work-which-is-why-were-spending-more-money-on-ithttp://www.extremetech.com/extreme/182175-the-united-states-missile-defense-system-will-never-work-which-is-why-were-spending-more-money-on-ithttp://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/russia/icbm/r-36m.htmhttp://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/russia/icbm/r-36m.htmhttp://www.extremetech.com/extreme/182175-the-united-states-missile-defense-system-will-never-work-which-is-why-were-spending-more-money-on-ithttp://www.extremetech.com/extreme/182175-the-united-states-missile-defense-system-will-never-work-which-is-why-were-spending-more-money-on-it

8/18/2019 THAAD

3/3

Deput% !rime -inister Dmitr% ogo/in( T#ese ne$ missiles $ill seriousl% erode

 THAAD(

Won’t sare !orth Korea

After t#e 3S in0asion of Ira4 and t#e e1ecution of !resident Saddam Hussein& anIndian diplomat remarked: CNe0er negotiate $it# t#e Americans $it#out #a0ing a

nuclear bomb(G T#e Nort# 2oreans internalised t#is prett% $ell and toda% t#e%

not onl% #a0e atomic bombs but #%drogen bombs as $ell( !lus& t#e% #a0e t#e

abilit% lob t#ese missiles prett% far(

In order to pre0ent t#e 3S doing an Ira4 on t#em& t#e Nort# 2oreans $ould #a0e

been content $it# an arsenal of a couple of do/en nuclear tipped missiles( Not

an%more( ?or& THAAD is likel% to spur t#em on to make e0en more bombs and

missiles(

!lus& $it# THAAD in t#eir back%ard& bot# t#e ussians and >#inese $ill adoptcounter measures( So don"t e1pect THAAD to contribute to regional securit%(

Lessons "rom the #old War

 To get a measure of ussia"s tec#nological lead o0er t#e +est in AB- s%stems&

%ou onl% #a0e to look at $#at -osco$ did according to t#e pro0isions of t#e 5689

AB- Treat%( T#e agreement allo$ed eac# countr% to erect missile defences to

protect one cit% and one I>B- cluster( T#e ussians deplo%ed an AB- s%stem

around -osco$ and it is still around( n t#e ot#er #and& t#e 3S deacti0ated its

lone s%stem in Nort# Dakota& in 568(

 T#e 3S #as long engaged in Star +ars and ne0er reall% belie0ed it could create a

0iable missile defence s%stem t#at deJects enem% missiles( n t#e ot#er #and&

t#e ussians . $#o $ere obsessed $it# defence after t#e trauma of +orld +ar II

. continued to de0elop 0arious classes of anti,missile missiles( T#ese include t#e

A,F& )#ttps:en($ikipedia(org$ikiA,FKanti,ballisticKmissileKs%stem* S,F& S,

and t#e S,(

So at t#e moment and for t#e foreseeable future& ussia #as little to $orr% about

 THAAD(

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A-35_anti-ballistic_missile_systemhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A-35_anti-ballistic_missile_system