Obama decides to unilaterally announce secret U.S. missile tests, satellite launches

I was just wondering .

Does this seem like a good idea to you?

President Obama has decided to pre-announce to the world once-secret American ballistic missile tests and satellite launches.

The Democratic administration's goal is to show a friendlier face to other countries and to coax Russia to do the same.

It's part of a confidence-boosting initiative launched, so to speak, last fall when Obama suddenly abandoned the U.S. missile-defense system in Eastern Europe that had exercised the Russians, though it was aimed at potential future missiles from Iran.

Obama hoped such a unilateral U.S. forfeiture would encourage Russia to put pressure on Iran to halt its nuclear weapons development. So far no good on that.

Of course, the point of secret tests by any state in an insecure, suspicious world is to deny advance notice to potential enemies, making it more difficult if not impossible for them to gain intelligence by monitoring the tests themselves.

According to George Jahn of the Associated Press, a confidential U.S. note sent to 128 other countries two weeks ago said:

The United States ... will provide pre-launch notification of commercial and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) space launches as well as the majority of intercontinental ballistic and submarine-launched ballistic missile launches.

Security experts note that Obama left himself some wiggle room by using the phrase "majority of intercontinental and submarine-launched ballistic missile launches," many of which depart from Vandenberg Air Force Base on the California coast.

Washington's hope is that Russia will resume doing the same.

The 129 countries involved are members of the Hague Code of Conduct against Ballistic Missile Proliferation. Four of the world's major nuclear-armed powers belong to the convention -- the U.S., Russia, France and Britain. Others such as China, North Korea, Pakistan and India do not belong and do not provide advance notice as the U.S. now will.

Another non-member is Iran, which continues ballistic missile testing and is believed to be developing nuclear weapons.

This Hague convention is separate from the new START nuclear arms treaty signed April 9 in Prague by Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. That agreement, now awaiting Senate ratification, would lower each side's nuclear arsenal from 2,200 warheads to 1,550.

-- Andrew Malcolm

Washington's hope is that Russia will resume doing the same.

latimesblogs.latimes.com...

Excuse me while I try and think of a logical explanation.

Huh? What's different?
www.spacearchive.info...

Originally posted by Phage
Huh? What's different?
www.spacearchive.info...

I don't know,

So why the announcement?

HI BTW, I think this is the first time you have posted on one of my topics.

So what is his motivation, is he unaware of what you just posted?

I was.

[edit on 123131p://bSunday2010 by Stormdancer777]

reply to post by Phage



Don't leave me now,

How long have they been releasing this information?
www.spacearchive.info...

reply to post by Stormdancer777

Hi yourself

Well, probably without seeing the whole memo it would be pretty hard to understand exactly what it's really about. But launches have never been very secret (kind of hard to hide a rocket and it's good to let airports know about them a little ahead of time at least). It's what is being launched that they don't always want people to know about. I doubt that's going to change.

I don't know how long the Vandenberg schedule has been online but there is this on the page:

Copyright © 2001-2010, Brian Webb. All rights reserved.

[edit on 5/23/2010 by Phage]

Originally posted by Phage
reply to post by Stormdancer777

 

Hi yourself

Well, probably without seeing the whole memo it would be pretty hard to understand exactly what it's really about. But launches have never been very secret (kind of hard to hide a rocket and it's good to let airports know about them a little ahead of time at least). It's what is being launched that they don't always want people to know about. I doubt that's going to change.

I don't know how long the Vandenberg schedule has been online but there is this on the page:

Copyright © 2001-2010, Brian Webb. All rights reserved.

[edit on 5/23/2010 by Phage]

Thank you,

Yes, one would think it would be hard to hide a rocket,

Thank you for the explanation, I guess we can wait and see just how much information Obama gives them, or more then likely we will never know.

i dont think anything obama is doing in this administration will turn out to be a total disaster, but he is on the way to becoming the next jimmy carter, or ford but i would bet jimmy carter. i have a feeling that there will be an embarrasing moment for obama like the iran hostage crisis and it is going to ruin his career and chances for reelection. his foreign policy strategy is that of a highschooler and he is playing with the big boys like russia and china where there is not wiggle room. welcome to the big leagues professor obama! you took the first step with all our cards and no one is following you, so according to the laws of negotiation he is going to have to GIVE UP MORE then what he would have had to give up just to get the same amount of diplomatic objectives acheived.

Is this a good idea? Well, for me personally, if this was a secret it is no long after this recent disclosure by the President. Moreover, he seems quite talkative about our nuclear deterrent. Hopefully, his judgment is sound regarding his counterparts in the Russian Federation? However, I have my reservations about Russia's candor and willingness to reciprocate on concessions made by the United States. We have seen them flip flop on the decision to back sanctions on Iran numerous times. Perhaps, they will do the same?

Plus, they have more intelligence about the United States nuclear arsenal. Now, I am not naive that Russian FSB probably has oodles of information already, however, it seems very odd that a sitting President would be so forthcoming about what seems to be classified information? Now, if this contributes to significant arms reductions on both sides, then it is a good move. Moreover, how can we be certain that Russians will follow through with their end of the deal? That is something I am unclear on. We remember this is the same administration that championed transparency, but remains cloak and dagger with its own citizens. What makes the President think the Russians will be transparent about some of their state secrets, as we have been with them about ours?

Now, at present the US and Russian relationship seems shaky at best. The whole Georgian thing, meddling in former Soviet satellite states, plans for missile defense systems being in Poland, a hard-line approach with Iran, and many other disagreements on the long list of concerns for Russia. Still, this seems like an odd approach to nuclear proliferation and diplomacy? It will be interesting to see how this plays out, because I think the President is putting too much trust in his counterparts abroad.

reply to post by Jakes51


You raised many good points,

I wonder who is counseling him on this issue, I will have to check it out tomorrow, see what I can find.

reply to post by jakemil


They must think he is a joke.

Maybe he's testing the Russians? I don't know, perhaps it is a psychological game, like a poker-face. I just don't see why he would offer information like this as a gift, knowing that it would make us look weak. Maybe the Russians already knew of this information?

At least he appears to be suggesting peaceful relations.

he wants to release documents? why not release the ENTIR Un edited, untampered JFK files* along with all UFO and us military and pentagons knowledge of it..not the papers with thick blacked out makrer lines over important information* thats how you know, CIA got thier hands on it last minute*
release all files known of the 9/11, and the truth as too why were are in afghanistan. and most importantly,..release all files of what our governments true intentions arre with us, the american dream and public*

reply to post by ziggy1706

Who said anything about documents?
This is about releasing information about upcoming rocket launches.

I don't really think it matters. It's not as if he is giving away secret information that will hurt the security of our oligarchy. As far as the Eastern European missile defense system, anyone who is the least bit familiar with world affairs, knows that Iran won't fire a missile in our direction anytime soon. It should be Israel or even ourselves that we need to worry about instead of these made-up boogymen, propagated by our government and their good friends, the MSM.

--airspoon

reply to post by Albastion



Offer like a gift, thank you for the phrase,

Yes, he is selling us down the river.

Originally posted by airspoon
I don't really think it matters. It's not as if he is giving away secret information that will hurt the security of our oligarchy. As far as the Eastern European missile defense system, anyone who is the least bit familiar with world affairs, knows that Iran won't fire a missile in our direction anytime soon. It should be Israel or even ourselves that we need to worry about instead of these made-up boogymen, propagated by our government and their good friends, the MSM.

--airspoon

Which boggyman you talking about?

Russia is looking better every day.

At least their leaders seem to have balls.



[edit on 093131p://bSunday2010 by Stormdancer777]

US lifts sanctions against Russians linked to Iran
May 21 04:03 PM US/Eastern
By ROBERT BURNS
AP National Security Writer
www.breitbart.com...
WASHINGTON (AP) - The Obama administration on Friday removed sanctions against three Russian organizations the U.S. had previously accused of assisting Iran's effort to develop nuclear weapons.

Penalties against a fourth Russian entity previously accused of illicit arms sales to Syria also were lifted.

The timing of the decisions, published in Friday's Federal Register but not otherwise announced by the State Department, suggested the possibility of a link to U.S. efforts to win Russian support for a new U.N. Security Council resolution expanding sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program.

The State Department on Friday did not immediately respond to questions about lifting the sanctions.