Thinking Through the Hypersonic Weapons Debate
"Debates in the United States about hypersonic weapons today revolve around acquiring hypersonic missiles and pursuing arms control initiatives, but concern about a hypersonic gap is misplaced and indicates a misunderstanding about the strategic trade-offs and benefits associated with hypersonic technology. Similarly, arms control solutions proposed to date have not paid enough attention to the specifics of the weapons and their implications for strategic stability. Using hypersonic weapons as a case study, [the author] outlines a theoretical framework for making decisions about acquiring new technology and developing arms control proposals.
~ READ MORE HERE (War On The Rocks) ~
Chinese Information and Influence Warfare in Asia and the Pacific
The People’s Liberation Army’s increasingly provocative and reckless activities in and around disputed zones such as Taiwan, the Senkaku Islands, and the South China Sea constitute only one means through which Beijing seeks to change key aspects of the regional order and compel others to “accept its interests.”
However, the Chinese Communist Party and PLA are already decades into China’s information and influence war, which is designed to either weaken the will and capabilities of the United States and its allies should military conflict break out or, even better, eliminate the need for China to use military force to achieve its primary objectives (i.e., to “win without fighting”).
~ READ MORE HERE (Hudson Institute) ~
North Korea-Russia Transport Infrastructure
On September 6, the US Department of State said Russia’s Ministry of Defense is “in the process of purchasing millions of rockets and artillery shells from North Korea for use in Ukraine.” If true, this is just one of many signs in recent months of deepening cooperation between Russia and North Korea beyond normal political support. This may also indicate the beginning of larger movements of goods and people between the two countries in the coming months. While it is unlikely that commercial satellite imagery will capture these kinds of movements, it is worth examining the transportation infrastructure between these two countries.
~ READ MORE HERE (38 North) ~ |
