According to the U.S. State Department, since 2003 over 32,000 illicitly held and loosely secured shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles have been destroyed. More commonly known as MANPADS (man-portable air defense systems), these weapons can shoot down civilian and military aircraft. It is estimated that since the 1970s over 40 aircraft have been shot down by the shoulder-fired missiles. Because they are small, lightweight, and inexpensive, they are a favorite weapon among terrorists. Nearly every country maintains a stockpile of them, including the U.S. Thus, there are serious concerns when weak states …
Despite the Clinton Administration’s failed efforts to ratify the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) in 1999, the Obama Administration believes the time is right for another attempt in the U.S. Senate, writes Heritage analyst Peter Brookes. Such optimism overlooks the realities of the current strategic environment, in which numerous states such as North Korea and Iran are either seeking nuclear weapons or expanding their arsenals. Furthering the White House’s CTBT optimism is the ratification of the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty last December. According to Ellen Tauscher, Under Secretary for …
After backpedaling on debating S. Res. 194, a resolution on the use of U.S. military force and operations in Libya, Senator John Kerry (D–MA), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has finally decided to hold a meeting this Thursday to mark up the resolution. The House of Representatives took the lead two weeks ago by passing a resolution prohibiting ground troops and demanding more details on U.S. operations in Libya. While the resolution is nonbinding, it did increase the pressure on the Senate to follow suit, especially since the …
