Wednesday, September 10, 2014

Here's how the "reset" button with Russia is working out.

PUTIN: RUSSIA TO FOCUS ON NEW OFFENSIVE WEAPONS

MOSCOW (AP) -- Russia is developing an array of new nuclear and conventional weapons to counter recent moves by the U.S. and NATO, but will carefully weigh the costs to avoid overburdening its economy, President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday.
Addressing a Kremlin meeting on weapons modernization plans, Putin said the West shouldn't be surprised about Moscow's efforts in view of U.S. missile defense plans and other decisions he said have threatened Russia's security.
"We have warned many times that we would have to take corresponding countermeasures to ensure our security," Putin said, adding that he would now take personal charge of the government commission that oversees military industries.
He said the weapons modernization program for 2016-2025 should focus on building a new array of offensive weapons to provide a "guaranteed nuclear deterrent," re-arming strategic and long-range aviation, creating an aerospace defense system and developing high-precision conventional weapons.
Putin wouldn't provide any details of prospective weapons, but he and other officials have repeatedly boasted about new Russian nuclear missiles' capability to penetrate any prospective missile shield.
Putin's emphasis on high-precision conventional weapons reflects government concerns about the U.S. and other NATO countries enjoying a significant edge in that area.
Putin said potential threats must be thoroughly analyzed, and an "adequate response" given to each of them to avoid excessive military spending.
He said that Russian defense industries must rid themselves of dependence on imports and quickly become capable of producing key components at home - a nod at recent Western sanctions against Russia barring arms sales.
Russia-West relations have plunged to their lowest point since the Cold War times over the crisis in Ukraine. A NATO summit last week decided to create a rapid-reaction "spearhead" force to protect Eastern Europe from Russian bullying.
Putin accused the West of using the crisis to reinvigorate NATO.



Russia successfully tests nuclear missile, more planned: navy chief


(Reuters) - Russia carried out a successful test of its new Bulava intercontinental nuclear missile on Wednesday and will perform two more test launches in October and November, the head of its naval forces said.
The armed forces have boosted their military training and test drills since the start of the conflict in eastern Ukraine, which Russia considers in its traditional sphere of influence.
The 12-meter long Bulava, or mace, has undergone numerous tests, some successful, and can deliver an impact of up to 100 times the atomic blast that devastated Hiroshima in 1945.
Naval Commander-in-Chief Admiral Viktor Chirkov said the test launch had been carried out from the White Sea and that the test missile had hit its target in Russia's far east.
"In October and November of this year, the naval fleet will carry out two more launches with two rocket cruisers equipped with ballistic missiles," Interfax quoted Chirkov as saying.
A Bulava missile weighs 36.8 tonnes and can travel 8,000 km (5,000 miles) and hold 6-10 nuclear warheads.

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