Limitations on ballistic missile defense—past and possibly future
By George Lewis, Frank von Hippel | June 28, 2018
Decoys as simple as balloons can often fool current missile defense systems.
The ABM Treaty is unlikely to be revived any time soon. But it is possible that restraints on US deployment of ballistic missile defenses could make them seem less threatening to the effectiveness of Russia’s and China’s nuclear deterrents and set the stage for discussions about ways to preserve and even advance nuclear arms control. The proposed restraints are on systems designed to intercept warheads outside the atmosphere. Such systems are of little value in any case because they can be easily deceived by decoys and other countermeasures.
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Issue: Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists Volume 74 Issue 4
Keywords: Aegis, Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, GMD, SDI, Star Wars, ballistic missile defense
Topics: Analysis, Nuclear Risk, Nuclear Weapons
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George Lewis
George Lewis is a Visiting Scholar at the Judith Reppy Institute for Peace and Conflict Studies at Cornell University. He has a doctorate in... Read More
Frank von Hippel
Frank N. von Hippel is a professor of Public and International Affairs emeritus, Princeton University, a co-founder of the Program on Science and... Read More
