Free Republic

Putin’s Activation of ‘Iskander-M’ Ballistic Missile Is a Message to Obama http://observer.com/2016/10/putins-activation-of-iskander-m-ballistic-missile-is-a-message-to-obama/ Putin’s Activation of ‘Iskander-M’ Ballistic Missile Is a Message to Obama The KGB officer in the Kremlin seeks one last, grand strategic humiliation for our president before he leaves office By John R. Schindler • 10/07/16 11:00am Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with Prince Albert II of Monaco (not pictured) at the Kremlin in Moscow on October 6, 2016. / AFP / POOL AND AFP / YURI KADOBNOV Russian President Vladimir Putin. Yuri Kadobnov/AFP/Getty Images It’s long been obvious that Vladimir Putin and his inner circle view Barack...

INS Rajput firing a BrahMos missile. Wikimedia Commons/Indian Navy While many of us remain mesmerized by the unfolding shambles in the Middle East, the world’s two most populous countries have gotten into a tiff over missiles. And I’m not referring to the ballistic kind for once. “India deploying supersonic missiles on the border has exceeded its own needs for self-defense and poses a serious threat to China’s Tibet and Yunnan provinces,” complained the People’s Liberation Army Daily. “The deployment of BrahMos missile is bound to increase the competition and antagonism in the China–India relations and will have a negative impact...

North Korea fires submarine-based ballistic missile, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reports This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest version

North Korea's new satellite mission aims for the moon, and beyond The North has asserted that international sanctions cannot stop Pyongyang's satellite programme to put its flag on the moon. By Nandini Krishnamoorthy August 4, 2016 12:10 BST North Korea is now reportedly hoping to see its flag fly up on the moon in a decade's time. The space officials in the Kim Jong-un ruled nation are said to be working on a five-year plan to put more advanced satellites into orbit by 2020. Aiming for the moon and beyond, a senior official at the North's version of NASA told...

NATO took command of a U.S.-built missile shield in Europe on Friday after France won assurances that the multi-billion-dollar system would not be under Washington’s direct control. The missile shield, billed as a defense against any strike by a “rogue state” against European cities, is one of the most sensitive aspects of U.S. military support for Europe. Russia says the system is in fact intended by Washington to blunt its nuclear arsenal, which the U.S. denies. “Today we have decided to declare initial operational capability of the NATO ballistic missile defense system,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told a news conference....

Debris likely from N. Korean missile washes ashore in Japan By HAYASHI YANAGAWA/ Staff Writer June 18, 2016 at 13:10 JST Metallic casing found on the shores of Yurihama, Tottori Prefecture, is believed to be part of a North Korean missile. (Provided by the Tottori prefectural government) TOTTORI--What appears to be part of the casing of a ballistic missile launched by North Korea has washed ashore in Tottori Prefecture facing the Sea of Japan. Authorities in the western prefecture said June 17 that an employee of an affiliated agency of the prefectural government came across the metallic part around 2...

Within hours of the crash of TWA Flight 800 off the Long Island coast on July 17, 1996, the FBI seized control of the investigation from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). Although illegal, this was done in full view of an indifferent media. What the media did not see was the CIA’s illegal seizure of the investigation from both the NTSB and FBI. We know about this quiet coup now thanks to a treasure trove of CIA documents recently unearthed through the Freedom of Information Act separately by attorney John Clarke and physicist Tom Stalcup. In a July 30,...

N. Korea's missile launch appears to have failed 2016/05/31 09:39 SEOUL, May 31 (Yonhap) -- North Korea launched a missile from its east coast in the early morning of Tuesday, but the launch appears to have failed, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said. "North Korea attempted to launch an unidentified missile from the region near Wonsan at around 5:20 a.m., but it is presumed to have been unsuccessful," the JCS said in a brief text message. The military is studying details of the launch and is maintaining a high level of combat preparedness, the JCS said. Sources said...

Was UFO a Russian ballistic missile? Russian Defense Ministry says it successfully test-fired intercontinental ballistic missile Thursday; earlier, unidentified flying object reported in Israel, Lebanon, other states in region and Reports from the Syrian cities of Daraa, Hama and Dir al-Zur are claiming that Assad's forces are using unknown gas shells against civilians. http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4239820,00.htm

Tehran (AFP) - Iran launched a new long-range missile late last month, a general announced on Monday, trumpeting the accuracy of the latest such weapon to be test-fired in defiance of the West. "A missile with a 2,000-kilometre range was tested two weeks ago," said General Ali Abdolahi, adding that it has a negligible margin of error of just eight metres (yards). "We can guide this ballistic missile. It leaves the Earth's atmosphere, re-enters it and hits the target without error," the armed forces deputy chief-of-staff said, quoted by the website of state broadcaster IRINN. However, several hours later, Defence...

The Obama administration is dodging a congressional inquiry into its refusal to designate recent Iranian ballistic missile tests as a violation of an international statute barring such tests, prompting frustration on Capitol Hill from lawmakers who accuse the administration of breaking past promises to enforce the missile ban, according to recent communications sent by the State Department and obtained by the Washington Free Beacon. Lawmakers launched an investigation earlier this month into what they describe as Obama administration efforts to mislead Congress about the nature of last summer’s comprehensive nuclear agreement. The administration’s refusal to say that Iran’s missile tests...

he South Korean defense ministry announced that an attempted test launch of a ballistic missile by North Korea ended when it exploded almost immediately after liftoff. The launch was the second test of the Musudan intermediate range missile in the last few days that ended in failure. The South Koreans believe that the test was rushed in order to have some sort of technological success prior to a rare meeting of the Party Congress on May 6. From Reuters: "They are in a rush to show anything that is successful, to meet the schedule of a political event, the party...

Iran is preparing to conduct a major ballistic missile test in February 2017, following the inauguration of the next U.S. president into the Oval Office, according to a timetable issued by the Islamic Republic. Iran is continuing work on advanced ballistic missile technology and has been engaged in various tests to perfect this work. Iran conducted a test launch earlier this month of its Simorgh space vehicle, which has emerged as a key piece of the Islamic Republic’s goal to perfect intercontinental ballistic missiles that would be capable of striking the United States with a nuclear warhead. The most critical

North Korea’s new sea-launched, nuclear-capable ballistic missile and the submarine that fires it are both technologically backward, unreliable, and wickedly unsafe for the unfortunate souls tasked with operating them. In short, Pyongyang's new undersea nuke—which the hermit regime test-launched off the country's eastern coast on April 23—is a dud by any normal standard.

North Korea has fired what is believed to be a submarine-launched ballistic missile off the east coast of the Korean peninsula, the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff said Saturday. The missile was fired at 6:30 p.m. local time (5:30 a.m. ET), South Korean officials said.

North Korea gearing up for another 'nuclear test' after failed missile launch April 16, 2016 08:27 SGT By Jacob J North Korean leader Kim Jong-un suffered a double whammy as a medium-range rocket launch failed and ally China castigated the reclusive regime for its military misadventures. However, the setback will only spur the dictator to adopt a tougher posturing in a bid to shore up power and Pyongyang was more likely than not to carry out a fifth nuclear test, observers have said. South Korean officials and international experts said the chances of North Korea conducting another nuclear test were...

US says North Korean missile launch was a 'catastrophic' failure By The Associated Press | Posted Apr 15th, 2016 @ 6:31pm WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon is describing a North Korean missile launch today as a "catastrophic" failure. The launch was meant to celebrate the birthday of the country's founder. But a South Korean news agency says the missile exploded in the air just a few seconds after liftoff. It was reportedly a new and powerful type of mid-range missile. A Pentagon spokesman says it appears to have been fired from a mobile launcher, since the location of the launch...

U.S. and South Korean authorities say a North Korean attempt to launch a missile failed catastrophically Friday. The AP reports: “It was a fiery, catastrophic attempt at a launch that was unsuccessful,” said Capt. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman. He said U.S. officials are still assessing, but it was likely a road-mobile missile, given that it was launched from a location not usually used for ballistic missile launches, on the country’s east coast.[…]U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter, speaking to reporters during a stop on the USS John C. Stennis aircraft carrier in the South China Sea, said that while...

U.S. sources: Signs of North Korea mobile ballistic missile launch By Barbara Starr, CNN Pentagon Correspondent Updated 1807 GMT (0107 HKT) April 12, 2016 CNN) — U.S. intelligence satellites have spotted signs that North Korea may be preparing for an unprecedented launch of a mobile ballistic missile which could potentially hit portions of the U.S., CNN has learned. Opinion: Impose sanctions on North Korea's enablers Two U.S. officials told CNN that if the regime proceeds with a launch, the latest assessments are the most likely scenario is the launch of the so-called Musudan missile, which the U.S. believes could potentially...

The United States suggested Thursday it was open to a “new arrangement” with Iran for peacefully resolving disputes such as Tehran’s recent ballistic missile tests. Setting the stage for President Barack Obama’s summit with regional leaders in Saudi Arabia later this month, US Secretary of State John Kerry met with the foreign ministers of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council to advance a series of proposals aimed at easing Arabs’ concerns about last year’s Iran nuclear deal and the warming of ties between the US and Iran. These include providing new counterterrorism, conventional military, missile defense and cybersecurity capabilities. Washington has...