In a compelling piece by William Patalon III for Money Morning, he tackles the words of Admiral Harry Harris, commander of the U.S. Pacific basin, pointing out that the naval officer had highlighted three immediate risks to the United States in regards to North Korea.
Risk 1: That North Korea will succeed in its efforts to create sub-launched ballistic missiles – an achievement that will put the Mainland United States within range of the threats being made by Pyongyang’s Kim Jong Un.
Risk 2: That China’s militarization of the South China Sea – coupled with its lack of “transparency” (military speak for “we have no damned idea how far they will push things”) – creates a major risk for America and its allies in the Pacific Rim.
Risk 3: And that China and Russia will succeed in creating conventional and nuclear-tipped “hypersonic” weapons – leapfrogging U.S. leadership (and stalled programs) in these areas, resulting in a new-and-real threat that the American military can’t currently defend against.
Kim Jong-un, a man of questionable sanity (as well as deity) has said that he intends on striking the United States and its allies with nuclear weapons. Admiral Harris believes that to be a true statement and takes the North Korean leader at his word. In a lively exchange with Senators and Representatives in Congress, the Admiral went so far as to assure the lawmakers that he disagreed vehemently with their sentiments that Pyongyang would never use nuclear technology against us.
For his part, he went so far as to warn Hawaii to begin beefing up its missile defense systems for fear that they may be an early target.
Admiral Harris’ fear was no so much for those intercontinental missiles fired from the Korean peninsula, so much as those that could be launched by submarines much closer to home.
As for the South China Sea, America has been in a battle of dominance and presence in this body of water for decades. China has claimed that the entire ocean is its to command and to patrol and enforce. The United States has been keeping close tabs on Chinese construction there of artificial islands as military bases, as well as its enforcement on other nations of no-fly zones which encroach upon the very reaches of the Antarctic.
The biggest threat, however, is that of the third risk, which is the construction by China of so-called “hypersonic” weapons.
Read about these, see video on the following page.
Duh!…I mean DUH…DUH…DUH…..the hacks who wrote this are just getting this information now?!!!!
The Russian HGV (hypersonic Glide vehicle ICBMs) have been in the field in limited installments for several years. They just “re-revealed” in the fall and the media shrieked in fear and promptly forgot about it again. The program was an upgrade program started in 2009 on a neven older missile. This is not new news.
The touted “Satan 2” announcement…GASP!…from last year….is actually the Rs-28 Sarmat missile known under NATO reporting name of SS-X-30 Satan.
IT can carry 10 heavy Thermo nuclear bombs or 15 light ones or 24 hypersonic glide vehicles mixed with countermeasure decoys. Top speed around mach 21.
The issue and fear is that with its standard ICBM speed of mach 20 and extra atmospheric travel and the ability to drop off missiles and decoys with counter measures at intervals……..and the only thing that can reach it at altitude and speed is our “THAAD” system….but it defeats the THAAD system by using nuclear sub-munitions…..and you start to see the issue.
WE damn well better have a better conventional military deterrent than we have now…..if we do not want to see this system used on us someday.
Love this. So true. Our establishment politicians want to keep it a left verses right so as to keep their jobs while playing the blame game. Truth is they are a part of a dysfunctional club of crooks that are playing us like a bow fiddle. Earl
Right-wing hatred in these comments is so rabid it is not worth even addressing it. It is a level of insanity that is too prevalent in our country.
You may have said something relevant had you spoke about the hatred from both sides, but instead you chose to be a leftist stooge.
You forgot intolerant liberal thinking
FYI…..WE ALREADY HAVE THEM.LOL..
Lockheed Martin has already built them for us
Biggest enemy has been our government
Take’em out!! We have the power to detonate them before they even get close to our country!!
Grab the bubble wrap libtards and run to your basements..You leave the kicking$#%&!@*to us big dogs!!!
So..Let’s her our subs and warships out there and put this$#%&!@*to work boys!!! Let’s keep them underwater in their nukesub grave! Sink that$#%&!@*and hold no prisoners!!!
You are a damn fool if you believe one missile, boat, troop, tank or any piece of North Korean equipment will EVER touch American soil.