Quote:
Originally Posted by Beelzebubba
It's not NATO nukes that has the Russkies' panties in a bunch. It's the US missile defense net.
Vlad and his neo-commie buddies do not like the possibility that we might be able to shoot down their ballistic missiles.
I think that regardless of how our anti-missile tests went, we should have just said, "yep, it works 100%"
I mean why not? DPRK and Islamic Republic of Iran photoshop their missile test photos.  |
Well, it wouldn't be the first time the US understated its capability
Quote:
Originally Posted by The_Blur
Remember that they are a power with priorities different than the US. They want to be sovereign and have a sphere of influence with neighboring regions. The US is stepping on Russian toes by introducing a missile defense net nowhere near American borders. Even if the intent of the net were to defend US allies, the net does not protect countries with hostile neighbors, like South Korea, Japan, Israel, or any of South America.
In other words, Russia wants to be able to act unilaterally without the US impeding Russian foreign affairs. As a sovereign nation, Russia has every right to be unhappy or even feel threatened by the US defense net.
On the note you made about claiming 100% accuracy, I just want to add that downplaying it's success rate may not be a bad thing. It allows the US to "need" more missile defense units overseas.
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Ah but it does. Even in Poland.
Huh?
On the surface that doesn't make any sense but in the grand scheme of things its a very clever move. The beauty of such a system is that it serves multiple purposes. The missile defense system can be deployed anywhere and it makes a huge political statement: "These are our friends, mess with them and you will be hurt badly". It can defend a nation against hostility, and if the other guy launches a first strike, that invites a retaliatory attack (I hope this never, ever happens). Those hostile nations are defenseless without a similar system in place. This keeps the hostile nations in check. If the bad guys are too afraid to strike, you can strike against them (if you need to) without fear.
Lots of assumptions in there of course.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wm Holden
there is no spoon.
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Yes. Its all in the mind, like everything else in politics. All moves are symbolic, this is no different. As was the war in Georgia. Russia wants to reassert its power, and show that they are still a global player. Perception is more important than reality. That is why CNN is the most powerful organization in the world.