[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Now why did Russia choose to make a statement today, not sure there is anything new in this ....?

[Last Dakotan]

Russia will develop missiles impervious to any defense...

Why?

[Fenris6]

Uh, Russia, we weren't thinking of you re the Missile Shield. Thanks for the heads up.

[HMFIC]

Uh, yeah right.

Russian missiles?

They can't defeat a bunch of Chechens but they have state of the art missiles...

RIIIIIIIIIIIIGHTTTTTTT!

PUTIN = Commie liar.

[pissant]

Pre-emptive strikes work pretty well.

[eclectic]

Okey-dokey, we'll have to zap them before launch!

[Shortwave]

EXCLUSIVE FIRST PHOTOS!

[wagglebee]

Putin is starting to remind me of Kruscheve more and more every day. The last technological breakthrough they had was Sputnik and that was because they had all of the former Nazis. I really doubt they have anything new now.

[Shortwave]

This just in...The United States deploys new missile defense measure to counter new Soviet nuclear missile. In this exclusive photo.....

[Kramster]

--Russia will develop missiles impervious to any defense--

Uh ... I think they better think twice about that.

[bd476]

This is not standard Putin PR. I wonder if he's having Kruschev-like fantasies. What does he do for an encore, bang his fist on the table after guzzling several shots of Stoli?

[Spktyr]

They made the statement today because of last Thursday's successful final/production test of the Aegis BMD 3.0/SM3 ABM system.

[Billthedrill]

"There is not and will not be any defense against these missiles," he said, according to Interfax.

How does he know?

[familyop]

Supply line:

Russia ----> Iran
     |                  |
     |                  |
    V                 V
Syria -----> Lebanon ---> Hezbollah

[Fenris6]

Maybe its paranoia? Putin's recent comments on CBS Rathergate already show he's not in touch with the real world. Putin may really think we intend to bully him with threats of a launch when we have our shield? Weird.

[Salman]

Considering that we don't actually have a missile defense at this time, what exactly is "any possible missile defense"?

Maybe it's not us that they are trying to impress?

[jveritas]

he said it is developing a new nuclear missile system unlike any weapon other countries have or could come up with in the near future.

This guy is utterly delusional. If he does not know about the unlimited power of the American engineering and technology then he is a complete fool. He needs to know that it is an impossibility that any nation on this planet can have any technology in any area that can be superior to ours.

[SaltyJoe]

I don't underestimate the ability of Russian scientists locked away in laboratories studying for months on end because it's very very cold and dark most of the year.

Yes, there are many secrets that the old cunning Soviet stole and bought from willful leftist socialists, but who came up with stealth technology that brought about the first F-111? Who developed HUGE WIG (wing-in-ground) effect Ekranoplans? Who developed a tank that beat the Germans in their own tank warfare tactics? Who put the first satellite into space? Who never retires their old equipment and has the ingenuity to keep it running for decades on end? And which people are best known for their ability to suffer and endure through the most miserable of conditions?

Like I said, I don't underestimate the Russians' ability.

[ken21]

forgive me for asking, but why is russia so focused on this?

i may be wrong, but i doubt that europe has militaristic goals with russia. nor the united states. china? who knows.

[normy]

The Bush administration has said its prospective missile defense system would be aimed against potential missile threats from nations such as Iraq or North Korea, and would be unable to fend off a massive nuclear strike Russia is capable of launching

Putin should know this, unless he is a paranoid lunatic. Maybe the second coming of Ivan the Terrible? Maybe its just something for the Chinese to consider?

If the Chinese were to steal or buy the technology once it is perfected, the Russians would have more to fear from them than us.

[familyop]

Here's an update to reflect recent events and an added guess. It's actually a lot more complicated than the following, BTW.


Supply line:

Russia ----------------------------> Iran
     |                                              |
     |                                              |
    V                                             V
Syria ---> Islamic Jihad ---> Hezbollah ----> Mediterranean Port