Russia develops weapons
able to evade defense systems
Russian officials say the new
warheads will be ready
by 2010 at the very latest,
but should not alarm America
By Alex Rodriguez
Chicago Tribune (KRT)
MOSCOW — Russia is developing
a new generation of warheads that can
elude any kind of missile defense,
though a Russian general stressed
Thursday that the technology was not
aimed at thwarting U.S. deployment
of a new missile defense system.
Missiles equipped with the new
warheads would be able to evade so
phisticated defense systems by chang
ing trajectory to avoid the range of in
terceptor missiles, said Gen. Yuri
Baluyevsky, first deputy chief of the
Russian armed forces' General Staff.
A prototype was tested during mil
itary exercises this week, Russia's
biggest since the Soviet era.
Baluyevsky said the warhead tech
nology would be ready for deploy
ment no later than 2010.
Baluyevsky's remarks shed light on
cryptic comments made by Russian
President Vladimir Putin Wednesday,
after he observed a second day of exer
cises aimed at testing Russia's strategic
missile capabilities. Submarine
launched missile failures Tuesday and
Wednesday marred the exercises.
Putin mentioned Russia's develop
ment of new strategic weapon tech
nology, but he did not say what that
technology was, in what way it was ad
vanced or when it might be deployed.
"The trick is very simple,"
Baluyevsky said. "The missile can
skirt zones of a regional missile de
fense, bypass areas where a defense
system has the capacity and range to
intercept it and thus penetrate a
future anti-missile defense system."
Alexander Golts, a military analyst
with the Russian publication
Yezhenedelny Zhurnal, called the
warhead technology a formidable
achievement in defense research. "If
it can change trajectory, it's absolute
ly revolutionary," he said.
Later this year, Washington is plan
ning to deploy its new missile defense
system, designed to thwart ballistic
missiles aimed at the continental
United States. Six interceptor missiles
will be stationed in Alaska and four in
California. Another 10 will be de
ployed in Alaska next year.
The missile can skirt
zones of a regional
missile defense, bypass
areas where a defense
system has the capacity
and range to intercept it
and thus penetrate a
future anti-missile
defense system."
Gen. Yuri Baluyevsky
Russian armed forces’ General Staff
In late 2002, when President Bush
announced his plans for a new missile
defense system, the Kremlin reacted
angrily by warning that the move
would sidetrack the war on terrorism
and restart an arms race.
Bush's move was preceded by U.S.
withdrawal from the 1972 Anti-Bal
listic Missile Treaty, which prohibit
ed the testing or deployment of mis
sile defense systems like the one
Bush envisions.
The Bush administration has said
that a new missile defense system
would focus on rogue states such as
North Korea, which according to in
telligence officials is working to de
velop long-range missile technology.
Washington is also concerned that
states like North Korea could provide
such missile technology to other
hostile countries.
Right now, only China and Russia
have the ability to strike the continen
tal United States with intercontinental
ballistic missiles. Russia was especial
ly concerned that interceptor missiles
were being placed across the Bering
Strait in Alaska.
However, Baluyevsky stressed that
Russia does not have America in mind
as it continues work on the warheads.
"The experiment conducted by us
must not be interpreted as a warning
to the Americans not to build their
missile defense because we designed
this thing," Baluyevsky said.
Golts said Russia's new warhead
technology isn't likely to pose a threat
to the United States, since Russia can
already overcome the new U.S. missile
defense system because of the sheer
number of intercontinental ballistic
missiles it has in its arsenal.
What is driving the Kremlin to
forge ahead with the new technology
and discuss it publicly is its desire to
appear to the Russian public as if it is
working hard to restore the country's
military parity with America, espe
cially three weeks before Putin's bid
for re-election.
"We have an election campaign
coming up," Golts said, "and it's im
portant to Putin to send a signal that
Russia is still on par with the U.S. At
least militarily."
(c) 2004, Chicago Tribune.
Distributed by Knight Ridder/
Tribune Information Services.
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