Moscow's warnings to US on weaponizing space and leaving INF

[Snowball]

Moscow says America’s newly unveiled space-based military strategy will unleash a dangerous arms race, urging Washington to settle arms treaty disputes "before it’s too late."

“The implementation of these ideas will inevitably lead to the start of an arms race in space, which will have the most negative consequences for international security and stability,” read the statement released by the Russian Foreign Ministry on Friday.

The statement came a day after United States President Donald Trump unveiled a space missile defense layer that seeks to develop space-based sensors to detect incoming missiles.

The project will also explore other ways to intercept missiles, including space-based weapons, a development Russia describes as confrontational and damaging to international stability.

“We would like to call on the U.S. administration to think again and walk away from this irresponsible attempt to re-launch, on a new and more high-tech basis, the still-remembered Reagan-era ‘Star Wars’ program,” added the Russian statement.

The ministry urged Washington to engage in constructive talks about the disputed arms developments “before it’s too late.”

The newly announced space-based program comes as the White House has been repeatedly accusing the Kremlin of violating the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF). Moscow, for its part, has strongly rejected such allegations, calling them unfounded.

Washington said last month it would withdraw from the INF within 60 days if Russia did not dismantle missiles that the US claims breach the deal.

The INF banned all land-based missiles with ranges of 310 to 3,420 miles and included missiles carrying both nuclear and conventional warheads. The original ban between Moscow and Washington led to the elimination of 2,692 missiles.

Tensions have boiled over the fate of the INF, with Russian President Vladimir Putin threatening a new arms race if the agreement collapses.

The Cold War-era treaty, which rid Europe of land-based nuclear missiles, has also come into question against a backdrop of renewed tensions between the West and Russia.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2019/...ssile-strategy

my comment: It has long been accepted that Mutually Assured Destruction, or M.A.D., the fulcrum of Cold War peace, guaranteed both nuclear superpowers, NATO and Russia, would destroy each other completely and wipe out most of life on Earth.
It was in trepidation of this occurance that, many times in the course of decades, hot trigger reactions were avoided and cooler heads prevailed, even in cases where an ICBM attack was actually possible. Today, reaction time has been squeezed down so low there is barely any time for diplomatic or military outreach, which demands a more immediate response.
Even more threatening is the policy of the U.S. that a nuclear war is "winnable", that taking out enough Russian missiles could ensure "victory", despite the repurcussions. Additionally, the U.S. continues to expand into, weaponize and pressure Europe to confront "Russian aggression". Facts are, the U.S. warring-up of Earth's orbit, coupled with a departure from the INF Treaty present survival reactions from Russia that could escalate into war. Despite the fact that these weapons are incredible expensive, dirty and command 24/7/365 babysitting, at least with the M.A.D. policy, and no local-medium distance weapons, the Cold War faded and the Soviet Union broke apart. Today, and in coming years, the first-strike, non-M.A.D., encroachment policy could result in nuclear war. None of it makes sense, unless you're part of that cabal that wants to take over the planet and is willing to sacrifice billions of people and trillions of animals. I am not among them, nor is 99.99999% of the general population.

[Dr.3D]

[RonZeplin]

The first Russian cosmonaut Laika is still up there. Protecting Mother Russia since 1957.

[Zippyjuan]

The "space arms race" is already well underway.

https://www.cnbc.com/2019/01/18/russ...ce-report.html

Russia conducted another successful test of an anti-satellite missile, according to a classified US intelligence report

Russia conducted another successful flight test of its new anti-satellite missile system last month, according to two people with direct knowledge of a classified U.S. intelligence report.

The anti-satellite missile flew for 17 minutes and 1,864 miles before successfully splashing down in its target area.

The latest revelation comes on the heels of the Pentagon's 108-page missile defense review, which marks the first overhaul of America's missile defense doctrine in nearly a decade. The unclassified review, which singles out emerging Russian, Chinese, North Korean and Iranian missile threats, also focuses on anti-satellite capabilities that "could threaten U.S. space-based assets."

According to the missile review, "Russia is developing a diverse suite of anti-satellite capabilities, including ground-launched missiles and directed-energy weapons, and continues to launch 'experimental' satellites that conduct sophisticated on-orbit activities to advance counterspace capabilities."

Russia's PL-19 Nudol, a system U.S. military intelligence assesses will be focused primarily on anti-satellite missions, was successfully tested twice in 2018. The weapon, which was fired from a mobile launcher, was last tested on Dec. 23 and marked the seventh overall test of the system, according to one of the people who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

The Russian anti-satellite weapon is expected to target communication and imagery satellites in low Earth orbit, according to the other person, who also spoke on condition of anonymity. For reference, the International Space Station and the Hubble Space Telescope travel in low Earth orbit.

While anti-satellite missiles are by no means new, the latest revelation comes less than a year after Putin touted his nation's growing military arsenal.

"I want to tell all those who have fueled the arms race over the last 15 years, sought to win unilateral advantages over Russia, introduced unlawful sanctions aimed to contain our country's development: You have failed to contain Russia," Putin said during a national address in March.

https://www.popularmechanics.com/mil...-space-weapon/

Is Russia’s Mysterious New Satellite a Space Weapon?

The U.S. is calling Moscow out over a satellite’s unusual behavior.

The U.S. State Department says that a new Russian satellite’s behavior is “inconsistent” with its stated mission. The satellite, which Russia claims is designed to maneuver close to and inspect other satellites, caught the attention of the U.S. intelligence community with its strange activity. The U.S. military and intelligence community rely on satellites for everything from communications and navigation to spying and there are concerns a rival power could attack the United States' satellite fleet in wartime to gain a strategic advantage.

The satellite was launched in June 23, 2017 from the Plesetsk Cosmodrone. Two months later, the Russian government announced the launch involved a described it as a “small-sized satellite....designed for different types of payload.” The payload was apparently a smaller satellite that separated from the main craft, “in order to inspect condition of the Russian satellite.”

On August 14, 2018, according to C4ISRNet, Yleem Poblete, State Department Assistant Secretary of State for Arms Control, Verification and Compliance told an audience in Geneva, Switzerland: “In October of last year the Russian Ministry of Defense deployed a space object they claimed was a ‘space apparatus inspector.’ But its behavior on-orbit was inconsistent with anything seen before from on-orbit inspection or space situational awareness capabilities, including other Russian inspection satellite activities. We don’t know for certain what it is and there is no way to verify it.”

According to the Russian state media, the parent satellite is Kosmos-2519. The smaller satellite “conducted autonomous flight, a change in orbit, and a satellite inspection before returning to the base station.”

Inspection satellites are a new development in the world of satellite technology. Satellites are expensive and often meant to last for years in the hostile environment of space. If something goes wrong it could be difficult to diagnose the problem. An inspection satellite can saddle up to a sick satellite and help engineers down on the ground figure out what’s going on.

The problem with inspection satellites is that they could easily be used as weapons. A satellite that can skillfully maneuver into position to take pictures of another satellite could also fire a laser at it, blinding its optical sensors, or use a robotic arm to physically damage it. It could even collide with the other satellite, executing a kamikaze attack.

How can you tell an inspection satellite from a satellite killer without a good look at it? That’s a good question. While the U.S. can’t get a good look at Kosmos-2519’s passenger, it can observe its behavior and observed something very fishy indeed. Exactly what U.S. spooks saw is a mystery.

All of this comes as there are concerns both Russia and China are working on satellite weapons to use against the U.S. in the event of war. In any future conflict U.S. forces will fight thousands of miles from home, making them more reliant on satellites to communicate with commanders in Washington D.C. and elsewhere in the continental United States. Russia has a ground-based anti-satellite system Nudol but ground-based systems are reliant on satellites passing overhead. According to the Washington Free Beacon two other Russian anti-satellite systems are under development, Rudolph and Tirada-2S, while China is simultaneously developing anti-satellite satellites, lasers, and missiles.

Does this mean that satellite warfare is inevitable in a future conflict? Not necessarily. All of space's major players recognize that satellites are vulnerable to one extent or another, and satellite warfare would be a case of mutually assured destruction. The U.S. military does not have any active satellite weapons, but it could field one fairly quickly. It also has a robust launch capability, with government and private industry able to send replacement satellites into orbit—something neither Russia nor China have. In an extended conflict the U.S. satellite network could be replaced more quickly than an adversary’s, leaving the American side with a net—and decisive—advantage.

[Swordsmyth]

The first Russian cosmonaut Laika is still up there. Protecting Mother Russia since 1957.

That's a nice edited quote you have in your signature, why didn't you include a link so people can read the whole thing?

Originally Posted by Swordsmyth

I vehemently oppose illegal immigration and abortion no matter who is involved, my record on both is clear.
I also manage to praise good actions on either no matter who is involved.

You only show up to attack Trump when he is wrong, you never attack anyone else in politics about either one and you never argue with the posters here who defend either one.

Prove me wrong, show just one post where you admit one good thing Trump has done about either or one post in the last year where you attacked anyone else or opposed anyone on this forum.