(CUWS) Outreach Journal

USAF Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies (CUWS) Outreach Journal

CUWS Outreach Journal 1191 13 November 2015

Feature Item: “National Biodefense: You’re Doing It Wrong”. Authored by Al Mauroni; published by War on the Rocks.com: 9 November 2015. http://warontherocks.com/2015/11/national-biodefense-youre-doing-it-wrong/ Recently, former Sen. Joe Lieberman and former Gov. Tom Ridge met with the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee to deliver a message on the state of the nation’s biological defense capabilities. They were there to warn the committee that the capabilities were inadequate. The United States is unprepared for the “very real biological threats we face” from terrorists and naturally emerging diseases. Despite concerns about the outbreak of biological diseases over the past 15 years, they believe that “no one has yet taken the lead to address this threat in a strategic and coordinated fashion.” The panel takes the approach of combining military biological warfare agents, general bioterrorism threats, and naturally occurring infectious diseases under a single category: biological threats. While there is some overlap in the fact that they are all agents of biological origin and the medical community responds in a uniform manner against these threats, the actual approach to dealing with these three categories of threats are significantly different. The military has a short list of biological warfare agents that have been optimized as weapons of war, and the military requires particular concepts and equipment to defend against their use while conducting their main mission of defeating the enemy. This is biodefense. The medical community has a mission of protecting the public’s health from any threat, no matter the source. This is biosafety. Finally, there is biosecurity, in which arms control and antiterrorism experts try to reduce the possibility of intentional use of biological organisms from external actors.

U.S. Nuclear Weapons 1. US Updating Nuclear Arsenal to Deter ‘Russian Aggression’ 2. Pentagon Wants to Make Its Nukes in Europe More 'Usable'

U.S. Counter-WMD 1. Putin: Russia to Develop Strike Systems Capable of Penetrating any Missile Defense Shield 2. TV Channels Accidentally Air Images of Russia's New Secret Weapon

U.S. Arms Control 1. Mystery Light over Ocean Was Missile Test 2. Navy Launches Second Test Missile off Southern California Coast 3. Russia Will Not Get Involved in Arms Race, but Has to Eliminate Shortfalls — Putin 4. Russia to Double Arms Tests for Strategic Missile Forces in 2016 Pentagon Studies New Mobile ICBM

Homeland Security/The Americas 1. Northrop's Long-Range U.S. Bomber Work Paused after Protest

Asia/Pacific 1. N.K. Nuke Strategy moves toward ‘Limited Use’: Scholar 2. N. Korea Denounces U.S. for Denuclearization-First Policy 3. Pyongyang Official Said to Have Been ‘Re-Educated’

Europe/Russia 1. Jeremy Corbyn Accuses Head of UK Military of 'Breaching' Constitutional Principle of Neutrality on Trident 2. Rostec CEO: Russia’s Contract with Iran on S-300 Missile System Delivery Comes into Force 3. Michael Fallon Backs Forces Chief's Remarks on Corbyn Nuclear Stance 4. Putin TV: Russia’s Got a Dirty Bomb 5. Russian Radiation, Chemical Biological Defense Troops Get New Equipment

Middle East 1. Termination of Sanctions Should Be Complete, Timely, Precise 2. Iran’s Top General Scolds US Defense Secretary for Inapt Comments 3. Rouhani: Iran to Modernize Arak Nuclear Reactor 4. Iran’s Recent Ballistic Missile Test a Game Changer: IRGC General 5. Spokesman: 4 Members of G5+1 to Cooperate with Iran in Redesigning Arak Reactor 6. Iran Will Receive Russian S-300 Missile System by Year-End: Dehqan 7. IAEA to Release Final PMD Report Late Nov. 8. Obama Renews 'State of Emergency' against Iran 9. Iran to Refuse Nuclear Deal Fulfillment if US Imposes New Sanctions 10. President Rouhani Says US Should Apologize to Iranians 11. Report: ISIL Trying to Make Biological Weapons in Iraq

India/Pakistan 1. Ballistic Missile Agni-IV Test-Fired as Part of User Trial 2. US Paper Calls for Reigning in Pakistan's Nuclear Programme 3. COAS Expresses Confidence in Pakistan's Nuclear Security

Commentary 1. Putin Shows Teeth in Russia’s Military Exercises 2. Revealed: Russia's Next Generation Nuclear Submarines 3. The Rapid Buildup of China’s Military: The 'Intentions' Question 4. Alexander Golts: The Kremlin’s Simulated Psychosis

5. Analyst: Doomsday Nuclear Torpedo Leak Gives Insight to Russian Strategic Mindset, Ballistic Missile Defense Anxiety Return to Top

The Times of Israel – Jerusalem, Israel US Updating Nuclear Arsenal to Deter ‘Russian Aggression’ Pentagon’s Carter says Washington not seeking new Cold War, but adapting ‘operational posture’ to deal with new moves by Moscow By Associated Press (AP) and Agence France-Presse (AFP) November 8, 2015 The United States is adapting its “operational posture” to counter Russian aggression, Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said Saturday. Carter on Saturday accused Russia of endangering world order, citing its incursions in Ukraine and loose talk about nuclear weapons, and said the U.S. defense establishment is searching for creative ways to deter Russian aggressive and protect US allies. “We are adapting our operational posture and contingency plans as we -– on our own and with allies -– work to deter Russia’s aggression, and to help reduce the vulnerability of allies and partners,” Carter told a defense forum at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California. Carter said the United States was modernizing its nuclear arsenal, investing in new technologies such as drones and a new long-range bomber, as well as lasers, an electromagnetic railgun and new systems for electronic warfare. The defense chief hinted at additional new weapons that would be “surprising ones I really can’t describe here.” Additionally, “we’re updating and advancing our operational plans for deterrence and defense given Russia’s changed behavior,” Carter said. Carter also expressed concern about China’s expanding influence and growing military might. But he reserved his stronger words for Russia. Carter said Russia is undertaking “challenging activities” at sea, in the air, in space and in cyberspace. “Most disturbing, Moscow’s nuclear saber-rattling raises questions about Russian leaders’ commitment to strategic stability, their respect for norms against the use of nuclear weapons, and whether they respect the profound caution nuclear-age leaders showed with regard to the brandishing of nuclear weapons,” he said. His remarks were perhaps the strongest he has expressed about America’s former Cold War foe. “We do not seek a cold, let alone a hot, war with Russia,” he said. “We do not seek to make Russia an enemy. But make no mistake; the United States will defend our interests, our allies, the principled international order, and the positive future it affords us all.”

The United States is adapting its “operational posture” to counter Russian aggression, Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said Saturday. Carter on Saturday accused Russia of endangering world order, citing its incursions in Ukraine and loose talk about nuclear weapons, and said the U.S. defense establishment is searching for creative ways to deter Russian aggressive and protect US allies. “We are adapting our operational posture and contingency plans as we -– on our own and with allies -– work to deter Russia’s aggression, and to help reduce the vulnerability of allies and partners,” Carter told a defense forum at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California. Carter said the United States was modernizing its nuclear arsenal, investing in new technologies such as drones and a new long-range bomber, as well as lasers, an electromagnetic railgun and new systems for electronic warfare. The defense chief hinted at additional new weapons that would be “surprising ones I really can’t describe here.” Additionally, “we’re updating and advancing our operational plans for deterrence and defense given Russia’s changed behavior,” Carter said. Carter also expressed concern about China’s expanding influence and growing military might. But he reserved his stronger words for Russia. Carter said Russia is undertaking “challenging activities” at sea, in the air, in space and in cyberspace. “Most disturbing, Moscow’s nuclear saber-rattling raises questions about Russian leaders’ commitment to strategic stability, their respect for norms against the use of nuclear weapons, and whether they respect the profound caution nuclear-age leaders showed with regard to the brandishing of nuclear weapons,” he said. His remarks were perhaps the strongest he has expressed about America’s former Cold War foe. “We do not seek a cold, let alone a hot, war with Russia,” he said. “We do not seek to make Russia an enemy. But make no mistake; the United States will defend our interests, our allies, the principled international order, and the positive future it affords us all.” The backdrop to Carter’s remarks is the reality that after more than two decades of dominating great-power relations, the United States is seeing Russia reassert itself and China expand its military influence beyond its own shores. Together these trends are testing American preeminence and its stewardship of the world order. Carter cited several pillars of the international order that he argued should be defended and strengthened: peaceful resolution of disputes, freedom from coercion, respect for state sovereignty, and freedom of navigation. “Some actors appear intent on eroding these principles and undercutting the international order that helps enforce them,” he said. “Terror elements like ISIL, of course, stand entirely opposed to our values. But other challenges are more complicated, and given their size and capabilities, potentially more damaging.” “Of course, neither Russia nor China can overturn that order,” he said. “But both present different challenges for it.” He accused Russia of stirring trouble in Europe and the Middle East.

“In Europe, Russia has been violating sovereignty in Ukraine and Georgia and actively trying to intimidate the Baltic states,” he said. “Meanwhile, in Syria, Russia is throwing gasoline on an already dangerous fire, prolonging a civil war that fuels the very extremism Russia claims to oppose.” Carter made clear that Russia is at the forefront of Washington’s concern about evolving security threats. Russia under President Vladimir Putin is challenging the US in many arenas, including the Arctic, where last year Moscow said it was reopening 10 former Soviet-era military bases along the Arctic seaboard that were closed after the Cold War ended in 1991. Russia also is flying more long-range air patrols off US shores. Carter left open the possibility that Russia’s role in Syria could evolve into one the US can embrace. “It is possible – we’ll see – Russia may play a constructive role in resolving the civil war,” he said. In a question-and-answer session with his audience, Carter said he believes Putin “hasn’t thought through very thoroughly” his objectives in Syria. He called the Russian approach there “way off track.” In his speech, Carter said the US will take a balanced approach by working with Moscow when productive and appropriate. Carter was addressing key US politicians and figures from the defense sector at the Reagan National Defense Forum, hosted by the Reagan library in Simi Valley. http://www.timesofisrael.com/us-updating-nuclear-arsenal-to-deter-russian-aggression/ Return to Top

Sputnik International – Russian Information Agency Pentagon Wants to Make Its Nukes in Europe More 'Usable' 12 November 2015 The United States has approximately 180 B61 nuclear bombs lying in wait in Europe. As “dumb” bombs, they’re relatively useless, but the Pentagon is about to spend $8 billion to turn a stockpile of obsolete weapons into something a little more "usable." In 2010, the Obama administration’s Nuclear Posture Review stressed that the United States, in the interest of non-proliferation, would not develop any new nuclear weapons. Stockpiles already in place – like the B61s held in six bases across continental Europe – can remain, but not increased. Which is why the development of the B61-12 is entering into an uncomfortable gray area. While not technically a new weapon, the Pentagon is administering significant upgrades to those B61s. With a new tail kit and adjustable yield, the US military is turning its aging hoard of "dumb" nukes into precision-guided models. The exorbitant cost to taxpayers is certainly one point of criticism– at $8 billion, the B61-12 is often referred to as the most expensive nuclear bomb ever made – but the escalated potential for conflict is another.

"If I can drive down the yield, drive down, therefore, the likelihood of fallout, etc, does that make it more usable in the eyes of some – some president or national security decision-making process?" former head of US Strategic Command General James Cartwright told PBS. "And the answer is, it likely could be more usable." Knowing that it has access to a "usable" nuclear weapon could alter the way the Pentagon thinksabout nuclear war. The B61-12’s "Dial-a-yield' technology means that any bomb could have its explosive force adjusted. With a max of 50,000 tons of TNT equivalent and a minimum of 300 tons, the military could customize its desired effect. A weapon that has been historically considered too dangerous to use could instead be viewed as a legitimate consideration in warfare. "Without a doubt. Improved accuracy and lower yield is a desired military capability. Without a question," former US Air Force Chief of Staff General Norton Schwartz said during a 2014 conference. While US officials continue to debate semantic arguments about the definition of the word "new," the upgrades to the nuclear stockpile will doubtlessly be seen as an alarming move by regional actors, especially given that the Pentagon’s new F-35 fighter jets can be outfitted with the new B61s. "If the Russians put out a guided nuclear bomb on a stealthy fighter that could sneak through air defenses, would that add to the perception here that they were lowering the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons?" said nuclear weapons expert Hans Kristensen of the Federation of American Scientists, according to Mother Jones. "Absolutely." http://sputniknews.com/us/20151112/1029950751/pentagon-usable-nukes.html Return to Top

TASS Russian News Agency – Moscow, Russia Putin: Russia to Develop Strike Systems Capable of Penetrating any Missile Defense Shield According to the Russian president, the true goal of the US missile defense shield is to neutralize Russia’s nuclear potential November 10, 2015 SOCHI, November 10. /TASS/. Russia will be developing strike systems capable of penetrating any missile defense shield, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday. "We’ll be working on the anti-missile defense system as well, but at the first stage, as we have said on many occasions, we’ll also be working on strike systems capable of penetrating any anti-missile defense shield," Putin said at a meeting on the development of the Russian Armed Forces. Putin said the meeting would discuss the development of such weapon systems that would determine the outlook of the Russian Armed Forces for the next decade and will become a response to the challenges confronted by Russia. According to the Russian president, the true goal of the US missile defense shield is to neutralize Russia’s nuclear potential. Issue No.1191, 13 November 2015 United States Air Force Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies| Maxwell AFB, Alabama http://cpc.au.af.mil \ https://twitter.com/USAF_CUWS Phone: 334.953.7538 | Fax: 334.953.7226 USAF Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies (CUWS) Outreach Journal

"The references to the Iranian and North Korean nuclear threats only disguise true plans. And their true purpose is to neutralize the strategic nuclear potential of other nuclear states, except the United States and its allies, first of all, the nuclear potential of our country, Russia," Putin said. The United States and its allies continue building the global missile defense system, the Russian president said. "Moreover, unfortunately, they are not taking into account either our concerns or proposals for cooperation," Putin added. Russia has been assured on many occasions that the European segment of the US missile defense shield is developing in the wake of a threat from Iranian ballistic missiles, the Russian president said. "However, we know that the situation with the Iranian nuclear problem has been settled and the relevant agreements have been signed. Moreover, they have been approved by the relevant parliaments. Nevertheless, the work on anti-missile defense systems is continuing," Putin said. Therefore, the references to the Iranian and North Korean nuclear threats are only a cover for the US true plans, the Russian president said. "And the US true goals are to neutralize the strategic nuclear potential of other nuclear states, except the United States and its allies, first of all, the nuclear potential of our country, Russia. Hence the desire to get decisive supremacy with all ensuing consequences," Putin said. "We have said on many occasions that Russia will take all necessary measures to strengthen the potential of its strategic nuclear forces," the Russian president said. http://tass.ru/en/defense/835356 Return to Top

Sputnik International – Russian Information Agency TV Channels Accidentally Air Images of Russia's New Secret Weapon 12 November 2015 Russia is apparently developing an underwater drone which will be able to inflict massive damage to coastal areas as part of a top secret project known as Ocean Multipurpose System: Status-6. The project's title may not sound ominous but the weapon is meant to be extremely potent. The torpedo, equipped with a nuclear warhead, will be capable of causing "assured unacceptable damage" to an enemy by contaminating vast coastal areas rendering them completely unusable for long periods of time. The drone, expected to have a maximum range of 10,000 kilometers (over 6200 miles) will be able to bypass NATO's missile defense system. A presentation slide with information on the Status-6 project was accidentally broadcast on Russian TV as part of a story covering Vladimir Putin's meeting with defense officials in Sochi, the Kremlin confirmed. "It is true that some classified information was captured on camera and subsequently deleted. We hope that this won't happen again," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday.

Those present at the meeting were discussing ways of penetrating missile defense systems. Status-6 is believed to be one of possible solutions. However, it remains unclear what stage the project is in and whether it will be completed. The document says that the drone will be developed by the Rubin design bureau. Two nuclear- powered "Project 09852" and "Project 09851" submarines that Rubin is currently working on will be tasked with launching the drone. The Saint-Petersburg-based Rubin design bureau is responsible for developing the majority of nuclear subs in service with the Russian Navy, including the ultra-modern Borei class war machines. The Project 955 submersibles are intended to serve as the backbone of Russia's maritime nuclear deterrence. http://sputniknews.com/military/20151112/1029974621/russia-status6-drone-submarine- nuclear-warhead.html Return to Top

The San Diego Union-Tribune – San Diego, CA Mystery Light over Ocean Was Missile Test By Pauline Repard November 7, 2015 A mysterious light that streaked across San Diego’s night sky Saturday, visible as far away as Nevada and Arizona, was a Trident missile test-fired by the Navy. Navy Strategic Systems Programs conducted the scheduled Trident II (D5) missile test flight at sea from the Kentucky, an Ohio-class ballistic missile submarine, in the Pacific Test Range off the coast of Southern California, a Navy spokesman said. The test was part of a scheduled, on-going system evaluation test, said Cmdr. Ryan Perry with the Navy’s Third Fleet. Perry said launches are conducted on a frequent, recurring basis to ensure the continued reliability of the system. “Each test activity provides valuable information about our systems, thus contributing to assurance in our capabilities,” he said in a statement. The missile was not armed and Strategic Systems Programs does not routinely announce missile testing. Information regarding the test launch of such missiles is classified prior to the launch, Perry said. The test range is a massive area northwest of Los Angeles. The Navy periodically uses the range to test fire Tomahawk and Standard cruise from surface ships and submarines. Law agencies and news media in San Diego were flooded with calls about 6 p.m. from people reporting everything from a flare to a comet to a nuclear bomb in the western sky. Some people saw it fade from bright red to white or blue, and thought it traveled from south to north. It’s not clear if the test has anything to do with flight restrictions issued for Los Angeles International Airport for the coming week.

Nighttime flights into and out of the Los Angeles airport are to avoid passing over the Pacific Ocean just the west of the airport because the U.S. military has activated airspace there, Reuters reported. The FAA and the military did not disclose the nature of the activities taking place near the second- busiest U.S. airport. Airplanes normally fly over the ocean when arriving and departing the coastal Los Angeles International Airport during the night to avoid disturbing nearby residents, airport officials said in a statement to the news service. But the FAA has indicated that military airspace over that patch of ocean was activated beginning on Friday night and continuing through Thursday night, airport officials said. As a result, the airport will need to deviate from normal flight patterns during the next six nights, the statement said. Many witnesses to the explosion speculated it was part of the annual Taurid meteor shower, which is reaching its peak. But Brian Keating, an astrophysicist at UC San Diego, quickly dismissed that. “The Taurid meteors would be coming from the east — and this light came from the west,” Keating said. “We'd also be more likely to see meteors about midnight, and the flash came near sunset.” Staff writers Kristina Davis and Gary Robbins contributed to this report. http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/2015/nov/07/mystery-light-sky-military-navy- drill/ Return to Top

The Los Angeles Times – Los Angeles, CA Navy Launches Second Test Missile off Southern California Coast By W.J. Hennigan, reporting from Washington November 9, 2015 The U.S. Navy said it launched a second -- and final -- missile in a planned exercise Monday afternoon from a submarine off the Southern California coast. The second test launch of the Trident II (D5) missile from a ballistic submarine in the Pacific Ocean took place Monday afternoon, the Navy said. The blast-off took place to far less fanfare than Saturday night’s launch, which provoked residents from San Francisco to Mexico to take to social media, posting photos of an eerie-looking bluish-green plume smeared above the Pacific. Speculations were wide-ranging, including rumors of an otherworldly alien UFO visit. In fact, the streak was generated from the Trident missile’s rocket motor. The Navy later confirmed a ballistic submarine launched an unarmed Trident II (D5) missile in a test flight, but would not define the window of time available for conducting additional launches, nor would it disclose where the exercise was actually taking place. “It’s important that we test these missiles for our national security,” said John M. Daniels, spokesman for the secretive Strategic Systems Programs office, which oversees the Navy’s nuclear- tipped missile arsenal. “We don’t announce future launches, but this is it for any time soon.”

The Kentucky, the ballistic submarine, conducted the two launches as part of a demonstration and shakedown operation, or DASO, process that certifies the readiness of a submarine’s crew and strategic weapons before returning to operational availability. It occurs after a submarine has its mid-life nuclear refueling, which involves replacing the expended nuclear fuel in the submarine’s reactor with new fuel. The Kentucky entered Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton, Wash., in February 2012 for an overhaul that ended in April. The Navy is considering posting additional photos -- and possibly video -- of the missile launches after the current exercises are completed, Daniels said, but it has yet to decide. The Navy’s fleet of 14 ballistic submarines can each carry 24 Trident missiles, each tipped with 14 independently targetable thermonuclear warheads. The Navy annually tests the Tridents, on the West Coast and on the East Coast, near Florida. The $31 million missile, built by Lockheed Martin Corp. in Sunnyvale, Calif., has had more than 150 successful launches since its first test in 1989. It is capable of hitting a target 4,000 nautical miles away. The test on Saturday featured the launch of a missile outfitted with a dummy warhead toward the Kwajalein Atoll, a missile test site that’s part of the Marshall Islands in the western Pacific. While the risk of nuclear confrontation between the United States and Russia declined after the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union, it has never gone away. The U.S. military’s nuclear weapons strategy rests on a triad of delivery systems — bombers, submarines and land-based missiles — developed early in the Cold War to deliver warheads anywhere in the world. The Pentagon recently embarked on a $355-billion program for modernizing each aging leg of the U.S. nuclear triad over the next decade. The submarine missile test came late Saturday after Defense Secretary Ashton Carter addressed a defense forum at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley about the U.S. “adapting our operational posture and contingency plans” to deter Russia’s “aggression.” “We do not seek a cold, let alone a hot, war with Russia,” he said to the forum. “We do not seek to make Russia an enemy. But make no mistake; the United States will defend our interests, our allies, the principled international order, and the positive future it affords us all.” http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-second-missile-launch-pentagon-20151109- story.html Return to Top

TASS Russian News Agency – Moscow, Russia Russia Will Not Get Involved in Arms Race, but Has to Eliminate Shortfalls — Putin It is necessary to eliminate the lagging behind that developed in the late 1990s and early 2000s, when the Armed Forces and defense-industrial complexes were underfinanced, the Russian leader says November 11, 2015 SOCHI, November 11. /TASS/. Russia has no intention of being involved in the arms race, but its defense industries will have to do away with the lagging behind that developed over the previous decades, President Vladimir Putin told a conference devoted to the development of the armed forces on Wednesday. "We are not going to join some arms race," Putin said. "Nor have we any intention to catch up with or overtake somebody. We are to just eliminate the lagging behind that developed in the late 1990s and early 2000s, when the Armed Forces and defense-industrial complexes were chronically underfinanced." Putin recalled that the theme of today’s meeting, a third in the current series of conferences on the development of the armed forces was progress in the implementation of the state defense contract. He said that measures would be identified to determine the effectiveness of interaction by the Defense Ministry and arms manufacturers. "Creation of a modern army, equipped with advanced hardware, remains one of the high priorities. As a matter of fact, it has been this way all along. Our task is to translate into reality all identified plans," Putin said. The national state defense order fulfilment is going as scheduled and new weapons are intensively used, Russian President added. "The state defense order fulfilment indicators for the first three quarters of the year suggest that defence industry enterprises and the Defence Ministry are meeting the schedule," Putin said. "In 2015, the troops received by a quarter more new and upgraded samples of weapons than in 2014. It is important that the supplied modern weapons are intensively used." Putin said that the state defense order financing is going as planned under the state armaments program until 2020. "This is not some kind of above-plan urgent work. It’s planned work. We had made up these plans 10 years ago," the president said. According to him, the improvement of the efficiency and quality of combat training has been confirmed by military manoeuvres and drills, including surprise inspections. "I hope this will continue," he said. On import substitution in the defense sector Import substitution in the defense technology sector should positively influence on nondefense branches of industry, Russian President Vladimir Putin said. "[Import substitution in the defense technology sector] exactly is the high-technology development of individual branches of our industry and, in my opinion, should also positively influence on nondefense segments," Putin said.

Such trends also exist in other countries, the head of state said. "We should ensure that we have the same ones," he added. "It is important to continue import substitution of foreign assemblies and components used in manufacturing of weapons and materiel," the president said. "Now we have to substitute more and more sophisticated assemblies, parts and packages," he added. http://tass.ru/en/defense/835577 Return to Top

Sputnik International – Russian Information Agency Russia to Double Arms Tests for Strategic Missile Forces in 2016 Nearly 160 models of different types of weapons will undergo tests for the Strategic Missile Forces in 2016 - twice as many as in 2015. 11 November 2015 MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Russia plans to double the number of military weapons tests for its Strategic Missile Forces at its central range in Russia’s south in 2016, a spokesman from the Russian Defense Ministry’s press service announced Wednesday. “It is planned to test approximately 160 models of different types of weapons, which is twice as much as for this year. Tests will be conducted not only in the interests of the Russian Defense Ministry, but also for other forces of Russia’s ministries and organs,” Strategic Missile Forces spokesman Col. Igor Yegorov said. The tests will improve military facility defense systems from being attacked by intelligence service weapons and precision weapons guidance systems, as well as monitor the progress of advanced military and special equipment, Yegorov added. Russia is currently undergoing a $325-billion rearmament program to achieve a 70-percent modernization of its military by 2020. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the country will hold at least 4,000 military drills throughout 2015. http://sputniknews.com/military/20151111/1029907768/russia-strategic-missile-forces- tests.html Return to Top

The Washington Times – Washington, D.C. Inside the Ring Pentagon Studies New Mobile ICBM By Bill Gertz Wednesday, November 11, 2015 The Air Force is nearing completion of plans for the next generation land-based strategic nuclear missiles that could be deployed on difficult-to-locate mobile launchers or in tunnels. According to an updated Congressional Research Service report published last week, the road- and rail-mobile missile concepts were outlined in a contract proposal two years ago produced by the Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center. “The Mobile concept employs a new ICBM on a transporter erector launcher (TEL),” the Air Force contracting document says. “The systems would be located on government land and be capable of deploying on- or off-road.” The new missiles are needed to replace the arsenal of 450 Minuteman IIIs and would put the United States in the same league with China and Russia. Both countries are deploying new and more advanced road-mobile missiles with multiple warheads. The Air Force is considering development of a new missile that would be silo-based but designed so that it could be deployed on a mobile launcher in the future, a congressional defense expert said. The Air Force and the contractor Orbital ATK conducted a ground test of a new solid rocket motor for use in the future ICBMs, the company said in a statement Wednesday, noting that the motor test demonstrated “new advanced technologies.” The U.S. government in the past rejected deploying mobile missiles, a basing mode considered more survivable in a nuclear conflict than the current silo-based intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs). The new road-mobile ICBM would be built so it could move to avoid being targeted and “therefore, a key feature will be the speed at which the TEL can depart the operating base when required,” the proposal reads. The new ICBM will be armed with one or two existing warheads and the transporter must be capable of traveling on roads and unpaved surfaces. The control system for the missile would be either fixed or mobile. The Air Force also considered a rail-mobile ICBM that would be stored in tunnels. “The tunnel concept mode operates similar to a subway system but with only a single transporter/launcher and missile dedicated to a given tunnel,” the Air Force said. “The vehicle moves at random down the length of the tunnel. The tunnel is long enough to improve survivability but leaving enough room to permit adequate ‘rattle space’ in the event of an enemy attack.” The missile rail cars would be self-propelled and remotely-controlled, with launch portals inside the tunnels at regular intervals that could be used to raise the missile and fire it through an opening.

Sputnik International – Russian Information Agency Progress on New START Treaty ‘Important’ Given Poor US-Russia Relations The importance of the US-Russian strategic arms control reduction treaty, or New START, is all the more significant given the decline in relations between the two countries. 12 November 2015 WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The importance of the US-Russian strategic arms control reduction treaty, or New START, is all the more significant given the decline in relations between the two countries, US Assistance Secretary of State for Arms Control Frank Rose said on Thursday. “In light of this downturn in [US-Russia] relations, the predictability and stability that the New START Treaty provides has proven all the more important,” Rose said at the World Affairs Councils of America conference in Washington, DC. To date, both Washington and Moscow have conducted all of their scheduled on-site inspections, and exchanged thousands of notifications on the status and location of defunct strategic nuclear forces, Rose said. New START was enacted in 2011 to reduce the total number of US and Russian deployed nuclear warheads down to 1,550 by 2018, as well as put limitations on deployed delivery systems. US-Russian relations suffered a steep decline in the aftermath of Crimea’s 2014 reunification with Russia. http://sputniknews.com/politics/20151112/1030004319/relations-us-russia-weapons- treaty.html Return to Top

Business Insider – New York, NY Northrop's Long-Range U.S. Bomber Work Paused after Protest Reuters November 12, 2015 WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Work on a recently awarded long-range strike bomber contract to Northrop Grumman Corp has been paused after rivals Boeing Co and Lockheed Martin protested against the selection process, the U.S. Air Force said. Air Force spokesman Major Robert Leese said the order to stop work was issued after a formal protest was filed on Nov. 6. In October, the Air Force selected Northrop, maker of the stealth B-2 aircraft, to develop and build the new bomber over a bid by a Boeing and Lockheed Martin team. Boeing and Lockheed Martin complained that the selection process was "fundamentally flawed." The protest reflected concerns about the Air Force's use of cost data from earlier bomber programs to assess the pricing of the planes, devaluing innovations and new manufacturing processes implemented in recent years, according to two sources familiar with the companies' thinking. The bomber deal, analysts have said, could be valued at up to $80 billion if the U.S. Air Force buys all 100 stealth bombers now planned. While Northrop referred queries about the pause in work to the Air Force, it has previously said that the protest decision was disappointing because it would disrupt a program important to national security. News of the pause was first reported by Aviation Week magazine. The U.S. Government Accountability Office has said a ruling on the protest is due by Feb. 16, 2016. Reporting by Idrees Ali; Editing by Alistair Bell http://www.businessinsider.com/r-northrops-long-range-us-bomber-work-paused-after-protest- 2015-11 Return to Top

The Korea Herald – Seoul, South Korea N.K. Nuke Strategy moves toward ‘Limited Use’: Scholar By Song Sang-ho November 12, 2015 North Korea’s nuclear strategy may be moving toward “limited use” with its growing nuclear stockpiles to further strengthen deterrence against conventionally superior adversaries including the U.S., an American expert said Thursday. Joel Wit, a senior fellow with the U.S.-Korea Institute at the Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies, also noted that over the last decade or so, Pyongyang’s strategy has been based on the concept of “assured destruction” -- a nuclear strategy to ensure deterrence through the threat of overwhelming nuclear counterstrikes.

Issue No.1191, 13 November 2015 United States Air Force Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies| Maxwell AFB, Alabama http://cpc.au.af.mil \ https://twitter.com/USAF_CUWS Phone: 334.953.7538 | Fax: 334.953.7226 USAF Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies CUWS Outreach Journal Maxwell AFB, Alabama “Typically, as countries build more and more nuclear weapons, they start thinking about different options for using them. So what we are seeing is thinking about limited options ... not so much that they are planning on using them, but just as a way of bolstering deterrence,” he said during a seminar arranged by local think tank Asan Institute for Policy Studies. “It wouldn’t be surprising because countries who face conventionally superior opponents often go to the possibility of limited nuclear use early in a timeframe in order to deter those conventionally superior opponents. So a prime example nowadays is Pakistan facing India.” Wit said that the “overriding principles” of Pyongyang’s nuclear strategy include the maintenance of its autocratic regime, deterrence against its potential adversaries, such as the U.S. and South Korea, and reunification on “its own terms.” Touching on the implications of North Korea’s possession of nuclear arms with regard to the peninsular reunification, the scholar painted a negative outlook. “I hate to say it, but a nuclear North Korea is not going to be reunifying with anyone except on its own terms, and the fact that it has nuclear weapons, that certainly strengthens that position for them,” he said. Despite international worries, the North has continued to develop its nuclear program, adopting “Byungjin line” policy of pursuing the development of nuclear arms and its economy simultaneously. It has also called itself a nuclear power in its constitution, although the U.S. and South Korea have not accepted that. Referring to the U.S.’ hitherto policy on the North, Wit underscored the “consensus” in Washington that the policy was not successful. He described the U.S. policy, which commentators often call “strategic patience,” as a “strategic coma,” an expression that Victor Cha, a North Korea expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, coined. “There is a consensus that the policy isn’t working. There is no consensus on what to do and this is a problem,” he said. To make progress in finding solutions to the North’s nuclear problem, he proposed talks through which Washington and Pyongyang could discuss formulating a peace treaty in return for the North’s denuclearization. Pyongyang has repeatedly called for peace treaty talks with Washington. But the U.S. has been reluctant to hold treaty talks as the North’s definition of the treaty involves the withdrawal of U.S. forces on the peninsula and end of the U.S.’ guarantee of the nuclear umbrella for the South, both of which would shake the foundation of the Seoul-Washington alliance. “One of the things I think we should do is to say to North Koreans that we are happy to sit down tomorrow and negotiate a peace treaty and, by the way, part of that negotiation should be denuclearization,” he said. “Because if a peace treaty is addressing your threat perceptions, the denuclearization addresses our threat perception. It is going to be complicated and difficult, but in fact, North Koreans have raised this possibility privately in the Track II meetings. And that was 2013 and 2014.” As for the North’s stockpile of nuclear weapons, Wit said based on his research team’s analysis that Pyongyang could secure a maximum of 100 nuclear arms by 2020 “if things go very well” with its overall nuclear program. http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20151112001127 Return to Top

Yonhap News Agency – Seoul, South Korea N. Korea Denounces U.S. for Denuclearization-First Policy November 13, 2015 SEOUL, Nov. 13 (Yonhap) -- North Korea criticized the top U.S. nuclear envoy Friday for urging it again to denuclearize first for a peace treaty. The North's foreign ministry reiterated a call for immediate talks on replacing the 1953 Armistice Agreement with a peace treaty. It was countering remarks by Sung Kim, special representative for North Korea policy, earlier this week at a Washington forum. Speaking on the North's demand for a peace treaty, Kim accused Pyongyang of having "the order wrong." "Before we can get to a peace mechanism to replace the armistice, I think we need to make significant progress on the central issue of denuclearization," he said. The North Korean ministry said, "This is the height of impudence." "Its insistence on the order of discussion is, in the final analysis, little short of refusing to roll back its hostile policy toward the DPRK," its unnamed spokesperson was quoted as telling the Korean Central News Agency. The DPRK is the acronym for the country's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. "The historical experience showed that it is impossible to solve any problem without fundamentally settling the hostile relations between the DPRK and the U.S. by replacing the Armistice Agreement by peace treaty," added the spokesperson. The two Koreas are technically in a state of war as the 1950-53 Korean War ended in a cease-fire. http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/northkorea/2015/11/13/0401000000AEN2015111300770031 5.html Return to Top

Korea JoongAng Daily Seoul, South Korea Pyongyang Official Said to Have Been ‘Re-Educated’ By KANG JIN-KYU November 13, 2015 The secretary of North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party is believed to have been sent to a rural agricultural cooperative for “revolutionary re-education,” according to a source specializing in North Korean affairs. The source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said Thursday that Choe Ryong-hae, known as the right-hand man and confidant of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, was likely serving his time in a rural cooperative and undergoing revolutionary re-education for his lackluster performance in the party.

“We only suspect Choe was relegated for his poor performance in the youth league of the Workers’ Party,” said the source, at the same time not ruling out the possibility that the official may have been punished for corruption. Speculation that the former director of the general political bureau of the North Korean People’s Army was purged has grown since Choe’s name did not appear on a list of some 170 funeral committee members for veteran military official Ri Ul-sol. Choe was also not seen at the state funeral held Wednesday for Ri, who died Saturday at the age of 94 from lung cancer. The ceremony was attended by Kim Jong-un and other senior party and military officials. Due to Pyongyang’s opacity, the order of the names listed on funeral committee records for important figures like Ri gives valuable insight into who has potentially been promoted, demoted or purged from North Korea’s elite power circle. “With all information [we have] available, we believe Choe is most likely at a rural farm cooperative right now,” the source said. Choe’s position was so significant that he was sent to Beijing as a special envoy in September to attend a military parade in celebration of China’s Victory Day. Several theories have been floated as to why the Workers’ Party secretary may have been pushed out. Some analysts believe Choe is possibly being punished for his unsuccessful attempt at mending ties with Beijing when Liu Yunshan, the fifth-most senior member of the Communist Party of China, visited Pyongyang on Oct. 10, the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the North’s ruling party. Still, others predict his punishment is related to the faulty construction of a power plant in Yanggang Province. The project was thought to be rushed in order to be ready ahead of the Workers’ Party anniversary celebration. http://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/article/article.aspx?aid=3011491&cloc=joongangdaily| home|newslist1 Return to Top

The Independent – London, U.K. Jeremy Corbyn Accuses Head of UK Military of 'Breaching' Constitutional Principle of Neutrality on Trident Labour leader says the Chief of Defence Staff has 'intervened directly in issues of political dispute' By Adam Withnall and Charlie Cooper Sunday, 8 November 2015 The most senior figure in the British Armed Forces has escaped sanction from the Ministry of Defence after being accused of an undemocratic and unconstitutional intervention into politics by Jeremy Corbyn.

Mr Corbyn accused General Sir Nicholas Houghton of breaching the "constitutional principle" of the military's non-involvement in political issues, after the head of the UK's armed forces criticised the Labour leader over Trident. Sir Nicholas appeared on the Andrew Marr Show on Sunday morning, where he said he would "worry" if Mr Corbyn became Prime Minister with a commitment never to use Britain's nuclear deterrent. In a statement, the Labour leader said it was "a matter of serious concern that the Chief of the Defence Staff has intervened directly in issues of political dispute". Mr Corbyn said he would be writing to the Defence Secretary, Michael Fallon, to demand action be taken "to ensure that the neutrality of the armed forces is upheld”. However, it appears likely the MoD will come out in support of Sir Nicholas. A unnamed source said that officials were “satisfied that the comments were not inappropriate.” Sir Nicholas also received the backing of Mr Corbyn’s shadow Defence Secretary Maria Eagle who, along with many leading Labour figures, is in favour of Britain keeping Trident. Ms Eagle told the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show that she did not think there was “anything wrong with [Sir Nicholas] expressing himself in those terms.” Earlier, Sir Nicholas implied in his interview with Andrew Marr that the Labour leader did not understand how a deterrent worked because he had said he would under no circumstances fire a nuclear weapon. He told the BBC: "It would worry me if that thought was translated into power. "The reason I say this - and it's not based on a personal thing at all - is purely based upon the credibility of deterrence. The whole thing of deterrence rests upon the credibility of its use. "When people say they're never going to use the deterrent, I say you use the deterrent every second of every minute of every day - the purpose of the deterrent is you don't have to use it because you effectively deter. “Most of the politicians I know understand that and I think, dare I say, the responsibility of power is probably quite a sobering thing and you come to a realisation 'I understand how this thing works'." Labour was recently forced to condemn as "pretty outrageous" comments from a serving British general who said Mr Corbyn could face a "mutiny" if he tried to downsize the Army. In highly contentious remarks to the Sunday Times, the unnamed army commander said any attempt by Mr Corbyn to take Britain out of Nato, scrap Trident or cut the size of Britain’s forces would be fought by means “fair or foul”. The general told the newspaper: "The Army just wouldn’t stand for it. The general staff would not allow a prime minister to jeopardise the security of this country and I think people would use whatever means possible, fair or foul to prevent that.

"You can’t put a maverick in charge of a country’s security. There would be mass resignations at all levels and you would face the very real prospect of an event which would effectively be a mutiny." http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-accuses-head-of-uk-military- general-sir-nicholas-houghton-of-constitutional-breach-a6726121.html Return to Top

TASS Russian News Agency – Moscow, Russia Rostec CEO: Russia’s Contract with Iran on S-300 Missile System Delivery Comes into Force Sergey Chemezov didn't specify the modification of antiaircraft missile systems that would be delivered to Iran November 09, 2015 DUBAI, November 9. /TASS/. Russia’s contract for the delivery of S-300 air defense missile systems to Iran has been signed and has come into force, the head of state hi-tech corporation Rostec, which integrates Rosoboronexport state arms seller, said on Monday. "The contract on S-300 systems has been signed," Sergey Chemezov said, without specifying the modification of antiaircraft missile systems that would be delivered to Iran. "I believe that Iran will withdraw its claims to us, when the first part [of the contract] is completed," the Rostec CEO said. Russia and Iran signed a contract in 2007 for the supply of five S-300PMU-1 battalions but in the autumn of 2010 then-President Dmitry Medvedev banned the supply of these systems to Tehran. The contract worth more than $800 million was annulled and the paid advance was returned to Iran. Iran filed an almost $4 billion lawsuit against Russia at the Geneva Court of Arbitration over Russia’s nonfulfillment of the contract. In the spring of 2015, Russian President Vladimir Putin lifted the ban on the supply of S-300 systems to Tehran. http://tass.ru/en/defense/834805 Return to Top

The Guardian (U.S. Edition) – New York, NY Michael Fallon Backs Forces Chief's Remarks on Corbyn Nuclear Stance Defence secretary says General Sir Nicholas Houghton’s comments were a ‘very important answer’ to a straight question By Rowena Mason, Political correspondent Tuesday, 10 November 2015 The head of the armed forces was giving a straight answer when he expressed worries about Jeremy Corbyn’s stance on Trident ever being enacted, the defence secretary, Michael Fallon, has said. Issue No.1191, 13 November 2015 United States Air Force Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies| Maxwell AFB, Alabama http://cpc.au.af.mil \ https://twitter.com/USAF_CUWS Phone: 334.953.7538 | Fax: 334.953.7226 USAF Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies (CUWS) Outreach Journal

Gen Sir Nicholas Houghton, chief of the defence staff, was accused of straying too far into politics by saying the Labour leader’s position on Trident would undermine the credibility of Britain’s nuclear deterrent. Corbyn was expected to write a formal complaint to Fallon demanding that Houghton be reined in. But Fallon, who has previously, described Corbyn as a security risk, said he had not received any such letter yet and dismissed concerns that Houghton breached the principle of political neutrality. “He made it very clear he wasn’t commenting personally on what Mr Corbyn has said but the chief of defence staff gives speeches and answers questions in public about these matters,” Fallon said. “He was asked a straight question and he gave a very important answer which is, if you have a nuclear deterrent you’ve got to be prepared to use it.” On Monday, the prime minister’s official spokeswoman said it was “reasonable” for Houghton, as the government’s senior military adviser, to speak publicly on the issue. She said: “The chief of the armed forces … made a point about the credibility of the deterrent. He made clear he wasn’t talking about a personal thing. “He was asked about the deterrent. And as the principal military adviser to the government, it’s reasonable for the chief of the defence staff to talk about how we maintain the credibility of one of the most important tools in our armoury.” The row erupted on Sunday when Houghton told the BBC’s The Andrew Marr Show that the Labour leader’s stance defeated the purpose of the nuclear deterrent. “It would worry me if that thought was translated into power,” he said. http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/nov/10/michael-fallon-backs-forces-chiefs- remarks-on-corbyn-nuclear-stance Return to Top

The Daily Beast – New York, NY Putin TV: Russia’s Got a Dirty Bomb By David Axe November 11, 2015 A Kremlin-owned TV network ‘accidentally’ airs footage of specs for Russia’s frightening new underwater nuclear weapon. Is it just a ruse to talk up Moscow’s military might? A stray camera at a meeting of top Russian military leaders has allegedly captured a glimpse of the Kremlin’s possible plan for a bewildering and frightening new weapon—a radiation-scattering “dirty bomb.” One delivered by a drone submarine, which itself rides piggyback on another submarine. The problem is: We have no way of knowing for sure if this is in fact an existing weapon or simply a media provocation designed to make us think that Russian President Vladimir Putin has got a dangerous new toy in his arsenal. If it’s real, then Russia is the first country we know about to come into possession of a weapon that, while not nearly as destructive as an atomic bomb, could spread lethal radiation over a wide area, rendering it uninhabitable. If the segment is a fake, it’s the latest in a long list of Kremlin media hoaxes. Issue No.1191, 13 November 2015 United States Air Force Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies| Maxwell AFB, Alabama http://cpc.au.af.mil \ https://twitter.com/USAF_CUWS Phone: 334.953.7538 | Fax: 334.953.7226 USAF Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies CUWS Outreach Journal Maxwell AFB, Alabama

“It’s true some secret data got into the shot, and it was subsequently deleted,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday about the mysterious footage. “We hope that this won’t repeat.” The technical aspects of such a device aren’t all that complicated. A dirty bomb is simply any munition containing conventional explosives wrapped in radioactive material. It explodes like any normal munition, but the fragments it scatters are irradiated and thus more dangerous for far longer periods of time than the debris from any standard bomb. Compared to nuclear weapons, dirty bombs are easy to make—and their use, while highly provocative, is less likely to spark global Armageddon. But they’re still nasty enough that, back in the 1970s, the United States and Russia came pretty close to banning them. This week Putin was in the Black Sea city of Sochi for a meeting with senior military officers and officials from Russia’s arms industry. A camera from government-owned Channel One news was in the room and, apparently by accident, looked over the shoulder of an officer as he flipped open a page on a briefing book. Channel One broadcast the footage at least once before editing the shots to remove the briefing, perhaps at the urging of government censors. But attentive viewers had already posted the original clip to YouTube—and got busy circulating screenshots on social media. The fleeting glance at the book, visible at the 1:46 mark in the video, features twin headers. “Ocean Multipurpose System Status-6” and “Developer—Rubin Design Bureau.” And, below that, some explanatory text and illustrations. “Purpose—the defeat of the important economic facilities in the area of the enemy coast,” the text reads, “and causing unacceptable damage to… the country through the establishment of extensive zones of radioactive contamination, unsuitable for implementation in these areas of military, economic, business or other activity for a long time.” The illustrations on the Sochi brief depict a torpedo-like robotic vehicle as well as two larger subs— the nuclear-powered “Project 09852” and “Project 09851” vessels that are under construction for the Russian navy, and which are both reportedly optimized for rescue, reconnaissance and other undersea special operations. “Today in Sochi Putin is shown proposal for Status-6—a massive ‘dirty bomb’ weapon system developed by Rubin,” tweeted Pavel Podvig, an independent military analyst based in Geneva. “Appears to be an underwater drone launched from a mini-submarine,” Podvig added. All of which sounds very scary and Cold War 2.0. But might that not be the point? For one thing, there’s nothing on these slides that says “Top Secret” or “Confidential,” which one would expect of Russian Defense Ministry documents outlining a new nuclear capability. Second, there’s always a chance that this “accidental” giveaway of state secrets was anything but. Soviet intelligence, which Putin once served, mastered the art of dezinformatsiya, or disinformation, the purposeful spreading of falsehoods in order to hoodwink the West. This often involved not just spreading defamatory fake news items about the U.S and its allies and getting them planted in Western newspapers but also concocting fake stories or bits of intelligence out of Moscow, the better to manipulate the American response. One of the more famous examples of dezinformatsiya was the bogus “doomsday report,” which Yury Andropov’s KGB cooked up in the late ’70s in order to get Washington to abandon its plans to deploy Pershing II nuclear missiles in Western Europe. The Soviet Academy of Sciences fabricated a whole study about the nightmarish ecological effects of

nuclear winter just so it could be distributed to environmental and peace groups on the other side of the Iron Curtain, thereby creating democratic grassroots pressure to nix the Pershings. So while it’s certainly plausible that sloppy Channel One editing gave keen viewers a chance to glimpse perfectly intelligible specs for a new Russian weapon system, it’s just as plausible that viewers were shown exactly what the Kremlin wanted them to see—plans for something that doesn’t exist. American arms control analyst Jeffrey Lewis, for one, was incredulous. “It sounds insane,” he told The Daily Beast by email. Lewis said he struggled to understand the appeal of a dirty bomb. “I guess it’s that you render areas unusable—like air bases or, more grimly, farms and sources of food.” In a 2014 article in Foreign Policy, Lewis recalled the history of dirty bombs. How Russia tinkered with the radiological weapons during the 1950s. And how, during the darkest days of the Korean War, with Chinese and North Korean troops threatening to overrun American forces, U.S. Army Gen. Douglas MacArthur proposed “sowing a band of radioactive cesium across Manchuria as a kind of ‘cordon sanitaire’ against the Chinese advance.” The Army tested prototype dirty bombs in 1952 but found them to be unreliable. Instead, the Pentagon directed its attention to developing lower-yield nukes. Still, the prospect of radiological warfare spooked U.S. and Russians leaders so much that, as part of the drafting of the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks in the 1970s, Moscow and Washington tentatively agreed never to deploy dirty bombs—an accord that collapsed in the early 1990s and “seems to have been all but forgotten by the arms control, disarmament and nonproliferation community,” Lewis wrote. More recently, analysts worried that rogue regimes such as North Korea and Saddam Hussein’s Iraq might deploy dirty bombs. But until now, no one seemed overly concerned that Russia might return to its deep Soviet roots… and revive radiological weaponry that it once sought to ban. With additional reporting by Katie Zavadski and Michael Weiss http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/11/11/putin-tv-russia-s-got-a-dirty-bomb.html Return to Top

Sputnik International – Russian Information Agency Russian Radiation, Chemical Biological Defense Troops Get New Equipment Russian Troops of Radiological, Chemical and Biological Defense (RChBD) have received about 80 units of modern special equipment in 2015 and are working on the development of new robotic systems, the Russian Defense Ministry reports. 13 November 2015 MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The Troops of Radiological, Chemical and Biological Defense in Russia are tasked with assessing radiological, chemical and biological environment, protecting units against radiological, chemical and biological contamination, reducing the visibility of troops and facilities, helping in disaster recovery efforts, as well as conducting attacks by using flame- incendiary means.

"Only this year about 80 units of special equipment were delivered to the RChBD troops," the ministry said in a statement, adding that the current focus is on maximizing the work of autonomous systems, increasing the number of drones and modernizing RChB distant reconnaissance systems. According to head of Russian RChBD troops Maj. Gen. Eduard Cherkasov, the troops will be supplied with modern weaponry up to 30 percent this year, while the target goal for 2020 is 70 percent. "At present, in the interests of RChBD troops, the development of a promising multipurpose robotic system is underway, with its completion planned for 2017," Cherkasov added. The head of Russian RChBD troops pointed out that the first "robots" in the Russian military were used by RChBD troops to conduct work in environments with a high concentration of toxic substances and high radiation levels. http://sputniknews.com/russia/20151113/1030012346/radiological-chemical-biological- defense-equipment.html Return to Top

Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) – Tehran, Iran 8 November 2015 Termination of Sanctions Should Be Complete, Timely, Precise Tehran, Nov 7, IRNA – President Hassan Rouhani said in his Saturday evening meeting with EP Speaker Martin Schulz that Western side must abide by its commitment and termination of sanctions should be complete, on time, and precise according to the Vienna agreement reached last July. 'Iran has always been quite faithful to all its international commitments, including the nuclear Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and acted accordingly, which is why we also expect the other side to remain fully committed to its commitments and implement them fully, on time and precisely,' President Rouhani said. President Rouhani also said that interactions with those nations that have different cultures are quite necessary for strengthening international relations. European Parliament Speaker Martin Schulz, too, expressing delight to meet the Iranian president, said that the emerged golden opportunity for restructuring Iran-EU relations should be used optimally. Iran is a permanent stabilizing factor in a region in which instability abounds, and as result terrorism in Syria which has led to an influx of refugees to Europe, and now our main shared objective is campaign aimed at uprooting Daesh. Schulz, meanwhile, considered expansion of scientific and cultural relations between Iran and the EU as a necessity, side by side with the expansion of political and economic ties, stressing that the EU asks for expansion of bilateral and international relations with Tehran. http://www.irna.ir/en/News/81829041/ Return to Top

Tasnim News Agency – Tehran, Iran Iran’s Top General Scolds US Defense Secretary for Inapt Comments November, 08, 2015 TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Major General Hassan Firouzabadi took a swipe at the US secretary of defense for his recent claims about the Iranian forces’ “ground presence” in regional countries and his warning to Arab states against Tehran’s “influence wielding”. The top Iranian officer made it clear on Sunday that the Islamic Republic “has no disagreement with any of its neighboring countries over territorial issues and national interests, and its diplomatic relations are in place with all of these countries.” “Our policy toward neighboring and Muslim countries is (promotion of) Islamic unity and preservation of Muslim interests and independence and sovereignty of all of them,” Major General Firouzabadi added. His comments came in response to last week’s comments by US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter who called on Washington’s Persian Gulf Arab allies to get involved more actively against Iran. “If you look at where the Iranians are able to wield influence, they are in the game, on the ground,” Carter said in an interview with the Atlantic, published on November 6. “We don’t like it that they’re in the game on the ground, but they are in the game. There is a sense that some of the (Persian) Gulf states are up there at 30,000 feet.” Elsewhere in his comments, General Firouzabadi described the US and the “usurper Zionist regime” of Israel as the main enemies of Iran, stressing that Tehran’s defense might is aimed at countering their plots. He said Carter’s remarks signify his “wrong information and lack of proper understanding of the regional issues.” The Iranian general also said that the White House and its allies show proclivity to killing Muslims. The atrocities by the US mercenaries, namely the “Takfiri and Muslim-killing terrorists in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Lebanon and North Africa have apparently not fulfilled their appetite. Thus, they (the US and allies) seek to pit Muslim countries against one another.” http://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2015/11/08/910900/iran-s-top-general-scolds-us- defense-secretary-for-inapt-comments Return to Top

Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) – Tehran, Iran 8 November 2015 Rouhani: Iran to Modernize Arak Nuclear Reactor Tehran, Nov 8, IRNA – President Hassan Rouhani said Iran is going to modernize the reactor in Arak with more advanced equipment in the future. Talking at the opening ceremony of the 21st Press and News Agencies Exhibition here on Sunday, he said it is a matter of national pride for Iran that it succeeded in safeguarding its inalienable rights and even go one step further to demand modernization of Arak nuclear plant. Iran has further asked the so-called group of P5+1 countries (including US, Russia, China, UK, France and Germany) to introduce their latest technologies into Iran’s nuclear activities, he said. He said the improved Arak plant that Iran is going to build will be remarkably different from its previous version. President Rouhani also said that (in the nuclear deal) Iran not only managed to consolidate its right for enrichment and transforming the yellow cake into UF6, but went on even further to gain the opportunity to trade it. He said Iran is going to join the international nuclear trade market in a few weeks, and in the process Iran will be able to modernize its certrifuges. The very day the nuclear agreement is implemented, the President stressed, Iran will inject IR8 in new centrifuges. http://www.irna.ir/en/News/81829927/ Return to Top

Tasnim News Agency – Tehran, Iran Iran’s Recent Ballistic Missile Test a Game Changer: IRGC General November, 10, 2015 TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Lieutenant commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) highlighted the recent successful testing of the homegrown ballistic missile ‘Emad’ as an accomplishment that has changed the world’s strategic view about Iran. The successful test of Emad was a great job that brought about a “change in the world’s strategic thinking on the Islamic Republic of Iran and altered the equations,” Brigadier General Hossein Salami said in a conference on the quality of defense equipment on Tuesday. He also called for efforts for a non-stop improvement of defense gears in the country. Back in October, Iran’s Defense Ministry successfully test-fired ‘Emad’, a long-range guided projectile that can hit targets with high precision. Categorized as a new generation of surface-to-surface ballistic missiles, Emad is the first Iranian long-range missile that can be guided and controlled until it hits the target with great accuracy.

Iran has in recent years made great headways in manufacturing a broad range of military equipment, including the air defense systems that use cutting edge technologies. Tehran has repeatedly stated that its military might is defensive in nature and poses no threat to other countries. http://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2015/11/10/912619/iran-s-recent-ballistic-missile-test- a-game-changer-irgc-general Return to Top

FARS News Agency – Tehran, Iran Tuesday, November 10, 2015 Spokesman: 4 Members of G5+1 to Cooperate with Iran in Redesigning Arak Reactor TEHRAN (FNA) - Spokesman of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Behrouz Kamalvandi announced that four members of the Group 5+1 (the US, Russia, China, Britain and France plus Germany) are due to cooperate with Tehran in redesigning its heavy water reactor in Arak. "Four countries of the G5+1 members have accepted to cooperate with Iran in supplying advanced equipment for the (Arak) reactor and different other issues," Kamalvandi told reporters in Tehran on Tuesday. Noting that the official document for redesigning Arak reactor has been finalized and is awaiting Iran and the world powers' endorsement, he said, "We have had negotiations on this issue in Vienna and recently, some consultations have been made by the Iranian foreign ministry officials in China." Kamalvandi, meantime, underscored that Iran, itself, enjoys the capability to redesign the Arak reactor but it has sought the world powers' assistance to accelerate the job. In relevant remarks in October, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araqchi announced that representatives of Tehran and the G5+1 had agreed on a draft document on modernization of Arak reactor in Central Iran. "A statement was compiled and released by Iran, China and the US yesterday in which the three countries announced their resolve to modernize Arak site in due time but what is more important to us is an official document which should be signed between Iran and the six members of the G5+1," Araqchi told reporters in Vienna after holding the meeting of a joint commission with representatives of the EU and the G5+1 on October 19. "The draft document has been prepared and experts have worked on it and it is in the final stage and God willing, the foreign ministers of the seven countries will sign it," he added. Araqchi described the meeting with the EU and G5+1 as "constructive", and expressed the hope that modernization of Arak reactor would start soon. In relevant remarks in August, Chinese nuclear officials in a meeting with AEOI Head Ali Akbar Salehi promised to help Tehran modernize its heavy water reactor in the Central city of Arak.

Iran and China agreed to modernize Arak heavy water reactor and cooperate in producing 20,000- megawatt of nuclear electricity. Salehi held talks with chairman of China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) to discuss ways to foster mutual cooperation. Touching upon the two countries' experiences in technical and engineering arenas, Iran's accessibility to the third generation nuclear technology and financing the nuclear projects, Salehi voiced the Islamic Republic's willingness to enhance its relations with China. The Chinese side, for its part, welcomed promotion of cooperation with the AEOI, and voiced readiness to help Iran modernize Arak heavy water reactor. http://english.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13940819001061 Return to Top

Press TV – Tehran, Iran Iran Will Receive Russian S-300 Missile System by Year-End: Dehqan Tuesday, November 10, 2015 Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Hossein Dehqan says the country will take delivery of Russian-made S-300 surface-to-air missile defense system by the end of the year. Speaking to reporters in Tehran on Tuesday, the Iranian minister added that the "executive stage" of the agreement for the delivery of the missile system is over, adding that Iran will receive a "major part" of the shipment in less than two months. “We have concluded a contract with the Russian side and it has also been signed,” Dehqan said in response to a question about an earlier report on an agreement between Tehran and Moscow on the delivery of the S-300 system. RIA Novosti on Monday quoted Sergei Chemezov, the chief executive of Russian state-owned defense conglomerate Rostec, as saying that Tehran and Moscow have signed a contract for the long-overdue delivery of the missile defense systems to Iran. Dehqan said Iran has purchased as many S-300 missile defense batteries as it needs. He also said that Iranian forces are currently undergoing training in Russia on the S-300 system. Russia banned the delivery of the S-300 system to Iran back in 2010 under the pretext that the agreement it signed with Tehran in 2007 was covered by the fourth round of the UN Security Council sanctions which bars hi-tech weapons sales to the Islamic Republic. In April 2015, however, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a presidential decree paving the way for the long-overdue delivery of the missile defense system to Iran. http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2015/11/10/437091/Iran-Russia-S300-Dehqan Return to Top

Mehr News Agency – Tehran, Iran IAEA to Release Final PMD Report Late Nov. Wednesday, 11 November 2015 TEHRAN, Nov. 11 (MNA) – Iran’s IAEA envoy Reza Najafi said the Agency’s final PMD report on Iran’s nuclear program will be released and resolved by late November . Iran’s Ambassador to the IAEA Reza Najafi called on the International Atomic Energy Agency watchdogs to take an impartial approach in preparing the upcoming report about the so-called possible military dimensions (PMD) of Iran’s nuclear case, adding “we expect the Agency to present a report based on facts – as was the case with Iran’s own report of its nuclear program – and steer away from the false information given by some western countries about Iran”. Najafi noted that the Islamic Republic has fulfilled all its commitments under the roadmap signed with the IAEA on July 14 – reached on the same day Iran and the 5+1 finalized the JCPOA in Vienna, adding that IAEA issued a statement on October 15 which confirmed the country has fully abided by the agreement. “After this point on, the IAEA will begin to draft a report for final evaluation. We will of course hold a meeting to review the latest points with the agency before the release of the report which is expected by late November,” he said, adding the IAEA should set the stage for the introduction of 5+1 resolution to an extraordinary session of the IAEA Board of Governors on 15 December . Under the JCPOA, the 5+1 group of countries are obliged to introduce a resolution for closing past issues of Iran’s nuclear case, he said. “One of our conditions for the implementation of the JCPOA, especially in the case of Arak reactor and fuel swap, is that the allegations of past military dimensions of Iran's nuclear program is settled. This is a very important stage and we predict that the IAEA's report will finally settle the case,” he said . http://en.mehrnews.com/news/111859/IAEA-to-release-final-PMD-report-late-Nov Return to Top

Tasnim News Agency – Tehran, Iran Obama Renews 'State of Emergency' against Iran November, 11, 2015 TEHRAN (Tasnim) – US President Barack Obama has extended Washington’s "state of emergency" with respect to Iran, keeping sanctions against the Islamic Republic in place for one more year. “Our relations with Iran have not yet returned to normal, and the process of implementing the agreements with Iran, dated January 19, 1981, is still under way,” Obama said in a letter to the Congress on Tuesday, official website of the Washington House reported. “Therefore, in accordance with section 202(d) of the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1622(d)), I am continuing for 1 year the national emergency with respect to Iran declared in Executive Order 12170,” he added. The state of emergency has been in place since 1979 when Tehran and Washington severed diplomatic ties. Issue No.1191, 13 November 2015 United States Air Force Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies| Maxwell AFB, Alabama http://cpc.au.af.mil \ https://twitter.com/USAF_CUWS Phone: 334.953.7538 | Fax: 334.953.7226 USAF Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies CUWS Outreach Journal Maxwell AFB, Alabama

“For this reason, the national emergency declared on November 14, 1979, must continue in effect beyond November 14, 2015.” On November 14, 1979, by Executive Order 12170, then US President Jimmy Carter declared a national emergency with respect to Iran, pursuant to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. US presidents have declared about 54 states of emergency since Congress passed the National Emergencies Act in 1976. The state of emergency forms the basis for most US sanctions against Iran. This comes after the recent nuclear deal between Iran and world powers and the upcoming termination of anti-Tehran sanctions. http://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2015/11/11/913586/obama-renews-state-of-emergency- against-iran Return to Top

FARS News Agency – Tehran, Iran Thursday, November 12, 2015 Iran to Refuse Nuclear Deal Fulfillment if US Imposes New Sanctions TEHRAN (FNA) - Iran will not fulfill agreements reached with the six world powers on its nuclear program if the US Congress introduces new sanctions against Tehran, President Hassan Rouhani said. Iran will not fulfill agreements reached with the six world powers on its nuclear program if the US Congress introduces new sanctions against Tehran, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said in an interview published Thursday. "The obligations are the following: the group of six will not impose new sanctions, and we should fulfill the agreements. In case the Unites States or other countries fail to comply with their obligations, we will be forced to do the same," President Rouhani told the Italian Corriere della Sera newspaper, answering a question on the possibility of new US sanctions. According to the Iranian President, a US decision to withdraw only nuclear-related sanctions on Tehran but keeping other restrictions in place has led to continuous disagreement between Iran and the United States. In July, Iran reached an agreement with the United States, Russia, China, France, the United Kingdom, and Germany, which would guarantee peaceful nature of its nuclear program and lift all the sanctions against the country. http://english.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13940821000942 Return to Top

Tasnim News Agency – Tehran, Iran President Rouhani Says US Should Apologize to Iranians November, 12, 2015 TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The recent nuclear deal between Iran and world powers could lead to a decline of tensions between Tehran and Washington, but the US is expected to apologize to Iranians before that, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani was quoted as saying on Thursday. "The way this (nuclear) agreement is applied can have an impact on the future," Rouhani said in an interview with Italy's Corriere della Sera newspaper ahead of his trip to Italy this weekend, his first to a European capital. "If it is well applied it can lay the foundation for fewer tensions with the United States, creating the conditions to open a new era. But if the Americans don't respect their part of the nuclear accord, then surely our relationship will remain as it has been in the past," he said, Reuters reported. Asked about the possible re-opening of embassies, Rouhani said, "One day these embassies will re- open but what counts is behavior. The Americans hold the key to this." He added that if "they modify their policies, correct errors committed in these 37 years and apologize to the Iranian people, the situation will change and good things can happen". US embassy in Tehran was shut down in 1979 following its seizure by Iranian university students. On November 4, 1979, and less than a year after the victory of the Islamic Revolution that toppled a US-backed monarchy, Iranian university students seized the US embassy in Tehran, which had become a center of espionage. The students who seized the embassy later published documents proving that the compound was indeed engaged in plans and measures to overthrow the Islamic Republic. http://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2015/11/12/914697/president-rouhani-says-us-should- apologize-to-iranians Return to Top

FARS News Agency – Tehran, Iran Friday, November 13, 2015 Report: ISIL Trying to Make Biological Weapons in Iraq TEHRAN (FNA) - The ISIL is trying very hard to gain access to fatal biological arms, and has killed many Iraqi scientists after they have rejected to help ISIL produce such deadly weapons, media reports said. "The ISIL Takfiri militants executed head of the physics department at Mosul University because he refrained from cooperating with them in developing biological weapons," the Arabic-language Al- Sumeriya news website quoted a local source in Nineveh province as saying on Friday. The ISIL occupied the city of Mosul on June 10; it has killed a large number of university professors, experts and physicians for not cooperating with them.

The ISIL has made extensive efforts to gain access to different kinds of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) ever since the terrorist group occupied parts of Syria and Iraq. In September, a UN official announced that the ISIL had evidently manufactured and used chemical agents at least four times during attacks on Kurdish forces in Syria and Iraq. Several reports by the Kurdish forces fighting the ISIL indicated the terrorist group’s use of chemical weapons, sparking an investigation by the UN A UN official said that at least four ISIL-led attacks using powdered mustard agents have been documented on both sides of the Syria-Iraq border. “We assess that they have an active chemical weapons little research cell that they’re working on to try and get better at it,” he said. Activists reported that the radical group is most likely using stockpiles found in Syria and Iraq, after taking over large territories in both countries and establishing its alleged Caliphate. In June, the ISIL militants reportedly used chemical weapons during attacks on headquarters of the Kurdish forces of the People’s Protection Units (YPG) in the Northeastern Syrian province of Hasaka. http://english.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13940822000650 Return to Top

The Times of India – Mumbai, India Ballistic Missile Agni-IV Test-Fired as Part of User Trial Rajat Pandit, Tamil News Network (TNN) November 9, 2015 NEW DELHI: In pre-Diwali fireworks over the Bay of Bengal, India on Monday successfully tested the nuclear-capable Agni-IV ballistic missile, which has a strike range of 4,000-km, from the A P J Abdul Kalam Island (formerly Wheeler Island) off Odisha coast. The user trial by the tri-Service Strategic Forces Command (SFC), which saw the two-stage missile being fired from a mobile launcher at 9.45am, met all mission parameters, said DRDO officials. The country's most formidable missile, the over 5,000-km Agni-V, in turn is slated to be tested in January-February. While the Agni-I (700-km), Agni-II (2,000-km) and Agni-III (3,000-km) have already been inducted by SFC, the Agni-IV and Agni-V are currently undergoing developmental and user trials before their induction can take place in another two to three years. Before Monday, the Agni-IV had undergone one failed and four successful tests over the last five years, with the last one being conducted in December 2014. The Agni-V, in turn, has been tested three times till now. The last test of Agni-V on January 30 this year was significant since it saw the missile being fired for the first time from a canister, which is designed to give the armed forces the requisite operational flexibility to swiftly transport and fire it from anywhere they want. The road-mobile Agni-IV and Agni-V are meant for deterrence against China, which can target any Indian city with its formidable inventory of long-range missiles. Once fully operational, Agni-V will also bring the northernmost part of China within its strike envelope, making it India's first true intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).

The worry remains the lack of an operational submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) to complete India's nuclear weapons triad. It will become a reality only after the indigenous nuclear- powered submarine INS Arihant becomes fully operational. INS Arihant is currently undergoing extensive sea trials, which will include test-firing of the K-15 (750-km) SLBM, in the near future, say officials. As reported by TOI earlier, DRDO is also working towards ``manoeuvering warheads or intelligent re-entry vehicles'' to defeat enemy ballistic missile defence systems as well as MIRVs (multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicles) for the Agni missiles. An MIRV payload basically means a single missile capable of carrying several nuclear warheads, each programmed to hit different targets.: India on Monday test-fired its nuclear-capable strategic ballistic missile Agni-IV, capable of hitting a target at a distance of 4,000 kms, from a test range off the Odisha coast as part of a user trial by the armed forces. Supported by a mobile launcher, the sleek missile was flight tested from the launch complex-4 of Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Abdul Kalam Island, formerly known as Wheeler Island, at about 0945 hours, defence sources said. The indigenously developed surface-to-surface Agni-IV missile is a two-stage weapon system. It is 20 metres long and weighs 17 tonnes. The trial was conducted by Strategic Force Command (SFC) of the army, they said. "The sophisticated surface-to-surface missile is equipped with modern and compact avionics to provide high level of reliability," sources in Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) said. Agni-IV missile is equipped with 5th generation onboard computer and distributed architecture. It has the latest features to correct and guide itself for in-flight disturbances, they said. The most accurate ring laser gyro-based inertial navigation system (RINS) and supported by highly reliable redundant micro navigation system (MINGS), ensures the vehicle reaches the target within two-digit accuracy. The re-entry heat shield can withstand temperatures in the range of 4000 degrees centigrade and makes sure the avionics function normally with inside temperature remaining less than 50 degrees centigrade. Agni-I, II and III and Prithvi are already in the arsenal of the armed forces, giving them reach of over 3000 kms and providing the country an effective deterrence capability, they said. Radars and electro-optical systems were positioned along the coast of Odisha for tracking and monitoring all the parameters of the missile, the sources said, adding two Indian naval ships were anchored near the target area to witness the final event. This was the fifth trial of Agni-IV missile. The last trial conducted by SFC of the army on December 2, 2014 was successful. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Ballistic-missile-Agni-IV-test-fired-as-part-of-user- trial/articleshow/49720522.cms Return to Top

Issue No.1191, 13 November 2015 United States Air Force Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies| Maxwell AFB, Alabama http://cpc.au.af.mil \ https://twitter.com/USAF_CUWS Phone: 334.953.7538 | Fax: 334.953.7226 USAF Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies CUWS Outreach Journal Maxwell AFB, Alabama The Nation – Lahore, Pakistan US Paper Calls for Reigning in Pakistan's Nuclear Programme Blames India for current tensions By Staff Reporter November 09, 2015 NEW YORK - Blaming Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for contributing to the current tensions between India and Pakistan, a leading US newspaper on Sunday called for "greater" international attention to the intensifying nuclear arms race in South Asia. In an editorial, The New York Times repeated its claim that Pakistan's nuclear arsenal was growing "faster than any other country's", stating, "Persuading Pakistan to rein in its nuclear weapons programme should be an international priority." Pakistan Army's stand that it needs still more nuclear weapons to counter India’s conventional arsenal, the editorial, 'The Pakistan Nuclear Nightmare' said, "The competition with India, which is ,adding, to its own nuclear arsenal, is a losing game, and countries like China, a Pakistan ally, should be pushing Pakistan to accept that." Army Chief General Raheel Sharif is due to visit Washington this month for security talks with US officials. The Times said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had "done nothing to engage Islamabad on security issues, and he also bears responsibility for current tensions." But the editorial was mainly directed at Pakistan, stating, "With as many as 120 warheads, Pakistan could in a decade become the world’s third-ranked nuclear power, behind the United States and Russia, but ahead of China, France and Britain. Its arsenal is growing faster than any other country’s, and it has become even more lethal in recent years with the addition of small tactical nuclear weapons that can hit India and longer-range nuclear missiles that can reach farther. "These are unsettling truths," the editorial claimed, "The fact that Pakistan is also home to a slew of extremist groups, some of which are backed by a paranoid security establishment obsessed with India, only adds to the dangers it presents for South Asia and, indeed, the entire world. Persuading Pakistan to rein in its nuclear weapons program should be an international priority, the Times said. "The major world powers spent two years negotiating an agreement to restrain the nuclear ambitions of Iran, which doesn’t have a single nuclear weapon. Yet there has been no comparable investment of effort in Pakistan, which, alongwith India, has so far refused to consider any limits at all.” "The Obama administration has begun to address this complicated issue with greater urgency and imagination, even though the odds of success seem small. The recent meeting at the White House on Oct 22 between President Obama and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif appears to have gone nowhere. Yet it would be wrong not to keep trying, especially at a time of heightened tensions between Pakistan and India over Kashmir and terrorism. "What’s new about the administration’s approach is that instead of treating the situation as essentially hopeless, it is now casting about for the elements of a possible deal in which each side would get something it wants. For the West, that means restraint by Pakistan and greater compliance with international rules for halting the spread of nuclear technology. For Pakistan, that means some acceptance in the family of nuclear powers and access to technology.

"At the moment, Pakistan is a pariah in the nuclear sphere to all but China; it has been punished internationally ever since it followed India’s example and tested a weapon in 1998. Pakistan has done itself no favours by refusing to join the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty and by giving nuclear know-how to bad actors like North Korea. Yet, it is seeking treatment equal to that given to India by the West. "For decades, India was also penalised for developing nuclear weapons. But attitudes shifted in 2008 when the United States, seeking better relations with one of the world’s fastest-growing economies as a counterweight to China, gave India a pass and signed a generous nuclear cooperation deal that allowed New Delhi to buy American nuclear energy technology.” American officials state they are not offering Pakistan an India-like deal, which would face stiff opposition in Congress, but are discussing what Pakistan needs to do to justify American support for its membership in the 48-nation Nuclear Supplier Group, which governs trade in nuclear fuel and technology. "As a first step, one American official said, Pakistan would have to stop pursuing tactical nuclear weapons, which are more likely to be used in a conflict with India and could more easily fall into the hands of terrorists, and halt development of long-range missiles. Pakistan should also sign the treaty banning nuclear weapons tests. "Such moves would undoubtedly be in Pakistan’s long-term interest. It cannot provide adequate services for its citizens because it spends about 25 per cent of its budget on defence. Pakistan’s Army, whose COAS is due to visit Washington this month, states it needs still more nuclear weapons to counter India’s conventional arsenal." http://nation.com.pk/international/09-Nov-2015/us-paper-calls-for-reigning-in-pakistan-s- nuclear-programme Return to Top

DAWN.com – Karachi, Pakistan COAS Expresses Confidence in Pakistan's Nuclear Security By Dawn.com November 13, 2015 RAWALPINDI: Chief Of Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif on Friday paid a visit to Pakistan’s Centre of Excellence for Nuclear Security (PCENS) and expressed confidence over the security of Pakistan's nuclear arsenal. "Pakistan has taken measures, including setting up of the PCENS, to strengthen its nuclear security," said the COAS. Interacting with officers and troops at the PCENS, the chief added that nuclear security is a sacred responsibility and lauded the progress the institution has made after its establishment. General Raheel Sharif also stated that Pakistan has also offered the PCENS as a regional and international hub for imparting education and training in the field of nuclear security to the international community.

could become the third largest nuclear stock pile within the next five to ten years ─ with at least The report cited analysts as saying that Pakistan possesses around 120 nuclear warheads as 350 nuclear weapons ─ behind only the United States and Russia. compared to India's 100. The report concluded by saying that Pakistan could have at least 350 nuclear weapons within five to 10 years. http://www.dawn.com/news/1219461/coas-expresses-confidence-in-pakistans-nuclear-security Return to Top

ValueWalk.com – New York, NY OPINION/Analysis Putin Shows Teeth in Russia’s Military Exercises By Stephen Paul Brooker November 7, 2015 Over the past several weeks, Russia’s armed forces have undertaken numerous exercises and drills. The most recent last week was a large-scale exercise that included the firing of a variety of missiles ranging from ballistic to cruise missiles. While military exercises are common-place, as of late Russia seems to be conducting them at greater frequency. President Vladimir Putin over the past two years has annexed Crimea from Ukraine, continues to fight a proxy war in East Ukraine, and has sent forces to fight along Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. As Russia’s economic situation deteriorates due to sanctions and low energy prices, Putin is attempting to show strength at a time of weakness and these exercises are an extension of that.

October 30 Missile Exercise The most recent drill occurred Friday, October 30 and involved multiple branches of Russia’s armed forces which form its nuclear triad. Only the U.S. and Russia currently have a nuclear triad which consists of air, land, and sea launched nuclear weapon capabilities. Multiple missile launches took place in an “exercise testing the reliability of the passage of combat-training orders and signals along the entire command vertical, from the Russian National Defense Management Center to the command points of formations and military units, inclusive,” in a statement released by the Russian Defense Ministry’s press service. According to the Defense Ministry, “Strategic underwater missile cruisers Bryansk of the Northern Fleet and Podolsk of the Pacific Fleet launched ballistic missiles from territories in the Barents and Okhotsk seas.” The Bryansk and Podolsk are nuclear ballistic missile submarines of the NATO- named Delta IV and Delta III-classes respectively. A SS-N-18 submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) and an SS-N-23 SLBM were both tested according to a U.S. defense official. A ground-based Iskander-M tactical ballistic missile was fired at a target in the southern Russia training field of Kapustin Yar near Kazakhstan. The Iskander first came into service in the Russian Army in 2010 and has a range of over 500 kilometers. In addition a SS-25 Topol intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) was launched from the Plesetsk launch site some 500 miles north of Moscow in northwestern Russia by the Strategic Missile Troops. In the Caspian Sea, the Buyan-class corvette Velikiy Ustyug from the Caspian Flotilla launched a Kalibr cruise missile at a training target. On October 7, four warships of the Caspian Flotilla including the Velikiy Ustyug launched a reported 26 Kalibr missiles against targets in Syria nearly 1,000 nautical kilometers away. Meanwhile Tu-160 Blackjack strategic bombers launched cruise missiles at practice targets at the Pemboi range in the northern Komi region and the Kura range on the far eastern Kamchatka PeninsulA. The Defense Ministry released footage of the exercise and it appears that KH-555 air- launched cruise missiles were launched from the Blackjacks. The KH-555 has a range of up to 2,500 kilometers and is nuclear capable. Reactions Speaking to the state-run Itar-Tass news agency on Tuesday, Russian Defense Minister General Sergey Shoigu said “In general, the results of the drills demonstrated high combat readiness of strategic nuclear forces and high-precision long-range weapons”. In the U.S. Mark Schneider, a former Pentagon nuclear forces official said that the exercise perhaps revealed new information. Referring to the Kalibr cruise missile and Iskander, he said “The use of these missiles in a strategic nuclear exercise tends to confirm Russian press reports that they are both nuclear capable.” In the West, it was initially believed that both systems were conventional. Concerning the Iskander he said, “If it is a ‘high-precision long-range weapon’ as the Russians say, it clearly would violate the INF Treaty (Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces)”. Russia’s Other Recent Exercises On Wednesday, November 5, the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov conducted the first stage of an air defense exercise in the Barents Sea. Crew of the ship practiced anti-air drills against aerial targets imitated by aircraft of the Northern Fleet. The second stage of the exercise will involve practical firing at imitated aerial targets.

Issue No.1191, 13 November 2015 United States Air Force Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies| Maxwell AFB, Alabama http://cpc.au.af.mil \ https://twitter.com/USAF_CUWS Phone: 334.953.7538 | Fax: 334.953.7226 USAF Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies CUWS Outreach Journal Maxwell AFB, Alabama On the same day as the missile exercises, Su-24 bombers from the Baltic Fleet 4th Independent Naval Assault Aviation Regiment carried out bombardment drills during an inspection. In the Kaliningrad region, the bombers carried out high-precision strikes against simulated enemy combat hardware, command posts and engineer obstacles at altitudes ranging between 200-2,000 meters while also practicing joint maneuvering and jamming of anti-aircraft defenses. Meanwhile Ka-27PL helicopters practiced anti-submarine drills against a simulated foreign submarine conducting reconnaissance on the Baltic Fleet. Additionally, Baltic Fleet air defense missile units and Su-27 fighters of the 689th Independent Fighter Aviation Regiment practiced repelling a simulated enemy aerial attack. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the simulated enemy carried out a strike on Baltic Fleet assets with a density of four targets per minute. The ministry said that Su-27s responded and “successfully hit all the targets” while working in a “heavy jamming environment”. On Monday and Tuesday October 25-26, a large exercise was launched in the Black Sea off of Russia-occupied Crimea. Su-24 frontline bombers of the Black Sea Fleet’s 43rd Independent Naval Shturmovik (Assault) Air Squadron practiced repelling simulated air strikes at combat training ranges off of Crimea. Afterwards, the Bora-class missile hovercraft Samum, the Nanuchka II-class corvette Mirazh and the Tarantul III-class R-60 and R-109 corvettes practiced delivering a missile strike against a simulated enemy’s ships and engaged in an artillery battle with a naval strike force simulated by ships of the 84th Novorossiysk Coastal Defense Brigade. Prior to the exercise, Black Sea Fleet spokesman Nikolay Voskresensky said “The ships are expected to live-fire cruise missiles in the final part of the drills to hit sea targets.” Analysis As said, Russia like other countries routinely holds military exercises. Recently though, the frequency of Russia’s exercises have increased while they have been made somewhat more public. Moscow is undoubtedly flexing its military muscle. In some ways this is for propaganda purposes and on the other hand, an attempt to cause concern in the West. For the most part, Russia’s involvement in Ukraine has been met with sanctions and limited promises of security to Eastern European countries; nothing substantial enough to have stopped the Kremlin from pursuing its course of action. In Syria, Russia’s military involvement and support of Assad is now essentially accepted by the West. Russia is undertaking a slow modernization of its military forces which were revealed to have severe deficiencies in the 2008 Russo-Georgian War. These drills are necessary to improve its capabilities while also showcasing its abilities to the world. One must wonder though, what is Moscow preparing for next? Stephen Paul Brooker is a writer, political researcher, and political consultant. His specialty is in East Asia security issues and he has lectured at St. John's University on conflict theory and international relations. He holds a Master's Degree in International Relations and a graduate certificate in International Law and Diplomacy from St. John's University. http://www.valuewalk.com/2015/11/putin-shows-teeth-russian-military-exercises/ Return to Top

The National Interest – Washington, D.C. OPINION/The Buzz Revealed: Russia's Next Generation Nuclear Submarines By Dave Majumdar November 9, 2015 Russia is developing two new types of nuclear submarines to replace its Project 949A Oscar-class and Project 945 Sierra-class vessels. The new vessels are a generation beyond Russia’s Project 955 Borei-class ballistic missile submarine and Project 855M Yasen-class guided-missile submarines, which are originally late Soviet-era designs. The Sierra-class replacement is being designed as an “interceptor” that would protect the Russian nuclear ballistic missile submarine fleet while the Oscar-class replacement would be a guided- missile submarine (SSGN) that would hunt U.S. carrier strike groups like their forbearers. “As part of the ongoing work on the design of fifth-generation of nuclear submarines, two models of the submarine will be created. The main purpose of the first —to ensure the sustainability of strategic missile submarine cruiser combat groups, and fighting enemy submarines,” Anatoly Shlemov, a senior executive with United Shipbuilding Corporation told the Russian new outlet Lenta.ru earlier this year. “The second boat will carry cruise missiles to hit shore and surface targets.” According to Shlemov, the two submarines—which are being developed by the Malakhit Design Bureau—will be based on a common hull design. The primary difference will be in the two vessel’s weapon systems—the interceptor variant will not feature tubes to carry long-range anti-ship or cruise missiles. That version of submarines is expected to replace Project 971 Shchuka-B (NATO: Akula), the Project 945 Sierra and the remaining Project 671RTM Shchuka-class (NATO: Victor III) boats. The SSGN variant will replace the Project 949A Oscar II-class. The Russians say that they expect the new submarines to entire production sometime between 2017 and 2018, depending on the variant. The interceptor variant will enter service in the 2020s if the Russian projections are accurate. American assessments of the Russian developments are not so optimistic. U.S. naval experts believe the new Russian boats won’t be entering production for sometime. “I did some checking and it seems like the Russians do have some new designs in the works. The people who watch this effort, however, don't believe it will result in new construction anytime soon,” said Bryan Clark, a submarine expert at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments. “Russia will continue with the upgrades to Akula and Sierra and construction of [Project 955A] Borei and [Project 855M] Yasen.” Clark noted that the Russians are specifically designing the new submarine to fit into the bastion strategy the Soviet Union used to defend its ballistic missile submarines during parts of the Cold War. However, but the Soviets were forced into using that strategy by the U.S. Navy. “In the Cold War they got backed into having to defend their SSBNs by U.S. actions. Now they are designing subs for that mission,” Clark said. The most interesting aspect of the new Russian designs is not that fact that they are designing a new generation of submarines, but rather the strategy that is driving the requirements for those

The National Interest – Washington, D.C. OPINION/The Buzz The Rapid Buildup of China’s Military: The 'Intentions' Question By Peter Navarro November 10, 2015 At the next presidential debate, the moderator asks: “How will you as President strategically respond to the rapid buildup and modernization of China’s military?” Each candidate’s answer will likely depend on the experts who have their ear – and what the candidates ultimately believe China’s intentions to be. For example, experts like George Washington University’s Amitai Etzioni counsel accommodation – Etzioni sees China “as a regional, rather than global power” with “neither the capability nor evident desire to establish a new world order.” In sharp counterpoint, the Hudson Institute’s Seth Cropsey asserts China’s “immediate goal is hegemony – to be the overlord of Asia” and insists on peace through countervailing strength. Former Assistant Secretary of State and father of the “pivot to Asia” Kurt Campbell attempts to bridge this wide intentions gulf with the observation “it's not clear China itself knows really what it wants.” This question of Chinese intentions is critical to determining appropriate White House policy – and whether any “pivot” to Asia is even necessary. If China seeks only to protect its homeland and guard the trading route its needs to prosper, the world has little to fear. If, however, China seeks to seize territory and perhaps even drive the U.S. out of the Western Pacific as experts like US-China Commission member Dan Slane and University of Chicago’s John Mearsheimer insist, these decidedly bad intentions militate a far firmer presidential response. China can certainly justify a strong military on homeland protection grounds after a Century of Humiliation involving aggression from a long list of foreign powers. There is also little question Trader China must morph from a continental-based power to a global naval force.

Indeed, as the world’s factory floor, China must continually feed its manufacturing facilities with massive quantities of natural resources from all over the world – copper from Chile, iron ore from Australia, oil from the Persian Gulf. China’s heavily export-dependent economy must also ship hundreds of billions of dollars of product to markets from Sierra Leone and Bolivia to Detroit, Frankfort, and Vancouver. As Alfred Mahan taught us long ago – and Mahanian scholars like Toshi Yoshihara and James Holmes of the U.S. Naval War College teach us today – naval power is the key to preserving one’s trading interests. Having given China’s good intentions angel its due, there is also this insight from Dean Cheng of the Heritage Foundation: “China has a legitimate interest in preserving its trade routes and preserving access to its markets. The problem arises when China purchases systems that aren't really necessarily focused on defending things like sea lanes, but, instead, appear to be primarily focused on keeping the United States out of the Western Pacific.” Dan Slane is even more blunt: “The Chinese are embracing their version of the Monroe Doctrine …to get us out of the Western Pacific so that they would have the ability to control that whole area of the world.” To Professor Mearsheimer, this is perfectly rational: “The best situation for survival in the international system is to be a regional hegemon -- to be by far the most powerful state in your area of the world and make sure no distant great power has come into your region.” As for China’s revanchist territorial ambitions, Beijing’s leaders themselves – along with People’s Liberation Army commanders – have made them abundantly clear. While it is old news that China asserts its right to the “renegade province” of Taiwan, few outside of India realize China also claims India’s Arunachal Pradesh as “Southern Tibet.” In what Cambridge University’s Stefan Halper describes as a “preposterous claim,” China also asserts sovereignty over 80% of the South China Sea while it similarly lays claim to Japan’s Senkaku Islands – along with a continental shelf that runs from the Chinese mainland right up to Japan’s 12- mile territorial limit. It is precisely because of such possibly bad intentions that this year’s bumper crop of presidential candidates must think deeply about the “China issue” and respond accordingly. They must do so not with meaningless slogans but rather with a set of appropriately nuanced policies worthy of the word “debate.” Peter Navarro is a professor at the University of California-Irvine. He is the author of Crouching Tiger: What China’s Militarism Means for the World (Prometheus Books) and director of the companion Crouching Tiger documentary film series. http://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/the-rapid-buildup-chinas-military-the-intentions- question-14302 Return to Top

Issue No.1191, 13 November 2015 United States Air Force Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies| Maxwell AFB, Alabama http://cpc.au.af.mil \ https://twitter.com/USAF_CUWS Phone: 334.953.7538 | Fax: 334.953.7226 USAF Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies CUWS Outreach Journal Maxwell AFB, Alabama Post Kyiv – Kyiv, Ukraine OPINION/Op-Ed Alexander Golts: The Kremlin’s Simulated Psychosis By Alexander Golts November 12, 2015 In the Soviet Union, every mature citizen knew what the term “product number 2” was code for: that was what condoms were shamefully called. But not everyone was familiar with “product number 1” – although it is precisely this product that is making a comeback in the public consciousness now: gas masks. Back then, the country was activelypreparing for nuclear war. And it appears that Russia is just about ready to return to those times, when its citizens periodically went running for gas masks, preparing to survive the third world war. This war hysteria was on full display recently when President Vladimir Putin gathered a meeting of his Security Council to discuss how to protect citizens from nuclear, chemical and biological threats. Putin made the mistake of saying the topic was relevant both during peacetime and, God forbid, during times of war. We can only guess that by mentioning times of war, the president either let too much slip out – namely what top-ranking officials were really discussing behind the scenes – or he was simply indicating an area that the public should be informed about. In any case,neither Security Council head Nikolai Patrushev nor Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin paid any attention to his mention of man-made risks. Because in their minds, the main source of radioactive,chemical and biological disasters is not outdated equipment or dilapidated industrial infrastructure at all. Tothem, the real risk is the United States. In Rogozin’s world, it’s all about the Prompt Global Strike – a U.S. plan that would see hypersonic cruise missiles able to strike anywhere on the globe within 30 minutes, with extreme accuracy. Rogozin is adamant that this idea was created in order to specifically threaten Russia. He says the strike would be aimed at Russia’s industrial enterprises and vital infrastructure. “Itis necessary to have in mind a map of infrastructure sites that could spread radiation and chemical materials, since the consequences of a strike against them by a high-accuracy projectile would be comparable to the use of a weapon of mass destruction,” Rogozin says. In reality, the strike is probably not aimed at Russia at all. Indeed,strategic missiles are tallied in the overall balance of weapons under the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty. So the launch of such missiles in the direction of our country would inevitably be recorded by the early warning system. Apart from that, Rogozin might want to bear in mind that the strike is only a theory right now. Over more than 10 years of research, Americans haven’t even decided what kind of ammunition and what kind of delivery system would be necessary for this global strike. Trials of prototypes have been unsuccessful. So what’s with all the hype? Rogozin still has another 10 years to ensure that the Russian population has a means of defense. Or to at least to come up with a more ominous purpose for the strike. But the hysteria has not been limited to Rogozin’s over-the-top statements.

His tales about the evil plans of the U.S. were lapped up by the head of the Security Council, Patrushev. Patrushev smugly noted that Russia intends to destroy its chemical weapons in 2020, while the U.S. will do this no earlier than in 2028. I never cease to be amazed by the shamelessness of Putin’s men. They are firmly convinced that no one will ever offer a reality check. For instance, they seem to think everyone will just forget that by signing the 1993 Convention on the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and the elimination of its stocks, Russia asked the world to chip in and help liquidate 40,000 tons of poison produced in the Soviet Union. As a result of this global initiative, 16 nations – including, of course, the U.S. – invested more than a billion dollars in destroying Russian chemical weapons. This program continued until very recently, in 2012. And yet Patrushev has the audacity to admonish Washington for Russia’s successes in dismantling chemical weapons. That pales in comparison to his statements about how the vile Pentagon is investing millions of dollars in developing biological weapons; he directly accused the U.S. of violating the Convention on the Prohibition of Biological Weapons. Without any evidence whatsoever. And he made this accusation even in spite of the fact that Boris Yeltsin, during his presidency, officially admitted that the Soviet Union was secretly developing biological weapons. The U.S. also has joint programs on monitoring the epidemiological situation with ex-Soviet countries – another thing Patrushev sees as a threat. The main question here is whether this hysteria is real psychosis or merely an act. Is Russia’s leader trying to resist these insane theories put forward by his enthusiastic subordinates? Or is hegleefully taking part in this simulated war psychosis? For ordinary citizens, there’s no difference: They’re doomed to march around in gas masks either way. Alexander Golts is deputy editor of the online newspaper Yezhednevny Zhurnal. https://www.kyivpost.com/opinion/op-ed/alexander-golts-the-kremlins-simulated-psychosis- 401911.html Return to Top

U.S. Naval Institute (USNI) – Annapolis, MD OPINION/Analysis Analyst: Doomsday Nuclear Torpedo Leak Gives Insight to Russian Strategic Mindset, Ballistic Missile Defense Anxiety By Sam LaGrone November 12, 2015 A proposed Russian submarine launched doomsday weapon — the existence of which was almost certainly leaked by the Kremlin — gives clues to the Russian mindset for the development of new strategic weapons in the face of the West’s increasing ballistic missile defense capability and Russia’s shrinking national assets, a naval analyst told USNI News on Thursday.

Issue No.1191, 13 November 2015 United States Air Force Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies| Maxwell AFB, Alabama http://cpc.au.af.mil \ https://twitter.com/USAF_CUWS Phone: 334.953.7538 | Fax: 334.953.7226 USAF Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies CUWS Outreach Journal Maxwell AFB, Alabama The Status-6 weapon was revealed on Wednesday during a Russian broadcast of a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and military leaders in Sochi and a screengrab of the weapon was widely circulated following the broadcast. The weapon is allegedly a “robotic mini-submarine” capable of speeds 100 knots with a range of 6,200 miles, according to state controlled press and designed to “destroy important economic installations of the enemy in coastal areas and cause guaranteed devastating damage to the country’s territory by creating wide areas of radioactive contamination, rendering them unusable for military, economic or other activity for a long time,” according to a translation of the document by the BBC. Immediately before the reveal of the weapon Putin was discussing how the emerging U.S. ballistic missile defense (BMD) network in Europe was “an attempt to undermine the existing parity in strategic nuclear weapons and essentially to upset the whole system of global and regional stability,” according to the BBC. Russia has been highly critical of the creation of two Aegis Ashore installations — one in Romania and one in Poland — that are land-based versions of the BMD capability found on some U.S. Arleigh Burke guided missile destroyers (DDG-51). In addition to Aegis Ashore, the U.S. has recently completed the basing of a quartet of BMD capable Burkes in Rota, Spain that are part of the Obama administrations European Phased Adaptive Approach (EPAA) to BMD. Eric Wertheim — naval analyst and author of U.S. Naval Institute’s Combat Fleets of the World — told USNI News on Thursday the reveal of Status-6 was telling as to the current Russian arms development mindset. “It shows that they’re thinking about non-conventional weapons in line with Cold War era thinking,” he said. “The West is developing weapons — like the Small Diameter Bomb — that create a smaller more targeted effect. This type of weapon is exactly the opposite.” The differences in the strengths and weaknesses of the Russian defense industrial base are much more extreme than the West’s. For example, the Russian’s are second only to the U.S. in the development of nuclear submarines and their latest attack submarine design has earned praise from U.S. Navy officials. However, the Russians lag behind the West in the manufacture of maritime gas turbines and Russian Navy’s surface ship construction is suffering as a result. A weapon like Status-6 would play into Russia’s current military strengths and provide the Kremlin with a strategic deterrent that would bypass the growing American acumen at BMD, he said. The weapon also comes with the benefit of being relatively inexpensive. While Putin has pledged to boost military spending, the last year has seen a massive drop in the value of Russian currency and decline in revenues from oil. “They want to develop weapons that are cheap but also effective,” Wertheim said. The reveal of the weapon also allows the Russians to display a degree of self confidence and capability as Russia begins to rebuild its high-end military capability after decades of neglect.

“They need a saber to rattle,” Wertheim said. “Whether or not this turns out to be real or a figment of their imagination remains to be seen but it shows where they’re going with their weapons development and that they’re thinking outside the box.” http://news.usni.org/2015/11/12/analyst-doomsday-nuclear-torpedo-leak-gives-insight-to- russian-strategic-mindset-ballistic-missile-defense-anxiety Return to Top

ABOUT THE USAF CUWS The USAF Counterproliferation Center was established in 1998 at the direction of the Chief of Staff of the Air Force. Located at Maxwell AFB, this Center capitalizes on the resident expertise of Air University, while extending its reach far beyond - and influences a wide audience of leaders and policy makers. A memorandum of agreement between the Air Staff Director for Nuclear and Counterproliferation (then AF/XON), now AF/A5XP) and Air War College Commandant established the initial manpower and responsibilities of the Center. This included integrating counterproliferation awareness into the curriculum and ongoing research at the Air University; establishing an information repository to promote research on counterproliferation and nonproliferation issues; and directing research on the various topics associated with counterproliferation and nonproliferation . The Secretary of Defense's Task Force on Nuclear Weapons Management released a report in 2008 that recommended "Air Force personnel connected to the nuclear mission be required to take a professional military education (PME) course on national, defense, and Air Force concepts for deterrence and defense." As a result, the Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center, in coordination with the AF/A10 and Air Force Global Strike Command, established a series of courses at Kirtland AFB to provide continuing education through the careers of those Air Force personnel working in or supporting the nuclear enterprise. This mission was transferred to the Counterproliferation Center in 2012, broadening its mandate to providing education and research to not just countering WMD but also nuclear deterrence. In February 2014, the Center’s name was changed to the Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies to reflect its broad coverage of unconventional weapons issues, both offensive and defensive, across the six joint operating concepts (deterrence operations, cooperative security, major combat operations, irregular warfare, stability operations, and homeland security). The term “unconventional weapons,” currently defined as nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons, also includes the improvised use of chemical, biological, and radiological hazards. The CUWS's military insignia displays the symbols of nuclear, biological, and chemical hazards. The arrows above the hazards represent the four aspects of counterproliferation - counterforce, active defense, passive defense, and consequence management.