In recent weeks, a difficult truth has been revealed with far-reaching strategic implications.
The United States is no longer capable of itself, far from it. It is becoming increasingly clear that while the Americans have been repeating their opposition to "space armament" for years - the Chinese and Russians are already there, with all the relevant armaments. The United States remains defenseless.
On November 16, the Russians launched a missile into space, which blew up an old-fashioned Russian spy satellite located very close to the International Station.
The satellite disintegrated into 1,500 pieces, each large enough to endanger the space station.
China has long had missiles capable of attacking satellites, as well as laser and electronic blocking technologies capable of damaging satellite communications. Last month, China stepped up its offensive capabilities against the U.S. satellite array. It launched a satellite with a robotic space spacecraft called Shijian 21. As Air Force General James Livingstone testified in April, "a robotic arm located in space could be used in the future as a disassembly system Other satellites. "China therefore has a constant ability in space to attack satellites.
Damage to the U.S. satellite array could paralyze U.S. and allied forces, as well as paralyze the U.S. economy and largely the global economy. But it will take time and will require large budgets to significantly reduce their vulnerability. Offensives like Shijian 21 are no stranger to them either, but in the meantime, it does not appear that the Americans are interested in going in that direction.
The first blow repeats
What is even more worrying about the threat to the US satellite array is the Hypersonic weapons that the Russians and Chinese are developing and incorporating into their nuclear arrays. Hypersonic velocity is five to twenty times the speed of sound. According to General John Haytan, the deputy chief of the United States' Joint Chiefs of Staff, in the past five years, China has conducted hundreds of Hyperson missile tests. The United States has conducted nine. The main danger of these missiles is that they are aimed from the moment of launch until the moment of impact. Combined with the tremendous flight speed, their ability to change direction throughout the entire cruise range makes them unrecognizable and uninterruptible.
In mid-October it was reported that last summer China carried out a test of a nuclear hypersonic missile, which managed to orbit the Earth before accelerating towards the target it was aiming for. The Americans were very surprised by the Chinese experiment. The propaganda in Washington until then was that China was years away from Hypersonic missile capability from space. Until August this year, only the Russians had a proven ability in the field. As of August 2018, the Russians have tried and deployed four hypersonic systems at sea, in the air, on land, and since last summer - also in space.
General Haytan said last week that the Chinese missile seemed to him like a "system for use as a first blow"; That is, a basis for a surprise nuclear attack against the United States. And as mentioned, the United States does not currently have the defense capability against missiles of this type.
According to the report, the Arrow-4 project that Israel is developing with the Americans is intended, among other things, to develop a system for identifying and intercepting hypersonic missiles.
As there are currently no hypersonic missiles in the Middle East, this means that for the first time Israel is developing technology with the United States, which is primarily intended to protect the United States.
At a security forum in Canada last weekend, General Thompson acknowledged that the United States does not currently have Hypersonic weapons. It is developing it, but it will take several years to reach where the Chinese and Russians are today. About USA.
The hypersonic array combined with the two satellites' anti-satellite capabilities make the United States more vulnerable than it has been since World War II.
The next test - Ukraine
All this was less troubling if the United States had demonstrated seriousness and credibility strategically in front of the allies and enemies alike. But the situation is the exact opposite. The most striking example of the lack of seriousness of the Americans in the field attack is its confrontation with Iran.
Unlike the problem of the arms race in space, US It has the ability to dismantle Iran's nuclear capabilities relatively easily. But today it is clear to US allies, and especially to its enemies, that the Biden administration has no plans to do so. Of its allies, led by Israel, to prevent Iran from becoming a nuclear power.
Against China and Russia the situation is not so different. While Russia is deploying a force of close to one hundred thousand fighters on the Ukrainian border, and Kiev warns that a Russian invasion is planned for another month or so, just this week the US administration woke up. It is considering the possibility of launching defensive weapons and military advisers to Ukraine, and imposing sanctions along with the Europeans against Russia - if it attacks.
In the Chinese sector the situation is much more difficult. Last week, Biden held a summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. The conversation took place amid, among other things, growing Chinese threats against Taiwan, accompanied by threatening air activity. As Colonel (retired) Grant recently testified, breathing from the Center for Security Policy in Washington, if the U.S. does not defend Taiwan, "U.S. credibility in Asia and at the global level will be destroyed."
Against the backdrop of growing Chinese threats against Taiwan, it was to be expected that Biden would make it clear to Xi Jinping that the US would not look on the sidelines if Beijing continued down the same path. But the opposite happened. On China's aggressive activity in space or in the development of hypersonic weapons.
Combined with its allies, the US is still the most powerful power in the world. It can still defeat its rivals on the battlefield and support its allies. But vis-à-vis Iran, China, Russia, Afghanistan and in general - the US's strategic credibility, its commitment to its security And to its allies, no less important, and perhaps even more, than its capabilities.
And what we see today on the part of the United States is a demonstration of weakness and compassionate weakness, just as it is frightening.
Were we wrong?
Fixed!
If you find an error in the article, we will be happy for you to share it with us and we will correct it
