Missile Beats Flying Lightsaber In Crucial Test

Missile 1, Flying Laser 0. So much for America’s real-life “lightsaber.”

The Missile Defense Agency has spent billions to trick out a Boeing 747 with a laser to shoot down missiles. But the so-called Airborne Laser Test Bed just failed a crucial test that it was expected to pass: shooting down a mock nuclear-armed missile from 100 miles away.

Sure, the flying laser was able to hit the dummy missile as it launched, reports Danger Room co-founder Sharon Weinberger, who broke the story for AOL News. But it wasn’t able to send it crashing into the Pacific Ocean during a September 1 test, as it was supposed to — and this was after delaying the test four times. “Program officials will conduct an extensive investigation to determine the cause of the failure to destroy the target missile,” the agency emailed Weinberger.

Clinton says NK must give up nuke ambitions

WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says the U.S. message to North Korea is the same, whoever leads the country: Give up your nuclear ambitions.

Clinton said Wednesday in a speech that the U.S. is watching the North’s “leadership process” but doesn’t know how it will turn out.

South Korea imposes independent sanctions on Iran

SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea said it will ban many financial dealings with Iran and impose other penalties as part of a U.S.-led campaign to enforce sanctions against the country over its disputed nuclear enrichment program.

The measures announced Wednesday by Seoul add to new, unilateral sanctions imposed by the U.S., Europe and others to pressure Iran to return to negotiations on its nuclear program, which Tehran insists is peaceful but critics say is a quest to develop atomic weapons that could spark a Middle East arms race.

Seoul targeted 102 entities with the sanctions, including the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines plus 24 individuals , Foreign Ministry spokesman Kim Young-sun said Wednesday.

India Test Fires Brahmos Cruise Missile

India test fired the supersonic cruise missile BrahMos from a defence base in Orissa, official sources said.
The missile was test fired from the Integrated Test Range of Chandipur in Balasore district, 230 km from state capital Bhubaneswar, the sources said.

India and Russia are jointly designing the BrahMos missile, which is capable of carrying conventional warheads up to 200-300 kg and has a range of 290 km, to be in line with the international regulations.

The missile is named after the Brahmaputra (India) and Moskva (Russia) rivers. It was first test fired in 2004.

Iran Remains Defiant, Nuclear Agency Says

WASHINGTON — Three months after the United Nations Security Council enacted its harshest sanctions yet against Iran, global nuclear inspectors reported Monday that the country has dug in its heels, refusing to provide inspectors with the information and access they need to determine whether the real purpose of Tehran’s program is to produce weapons.

For several weeks the Obama administration has argued that the sanctions are beginning to bite, cutting off Iran’s access to foreign capital, halting investment in its energy sector and impeding its ability to send its ships in and out of some foreign ports.

While there are strong indications that Iran is beginning to feel pain — largely from additional sanctions imposed by the United States and European and Asian nations over the summer — the report on Monday from the International Atomic Energy Agency indicates that so far they have failed to force Iran to comply with longstanding requests.

N. Korea Workers’ Party meeting raises speculation

For a confab with such far-reaching implications, not much is known about North Korea’s largest political gathering in three decades, rumored to be staged in the capital of Pyongyang this week.

The time frame for the Workers’ Party meetings, released by officials, was simply “early September,” leading North Korea watchers to speculate that the events would kick off Monday, the country’s founding day.

N. Korea Conference Hints At Possible Power Shift

With delegates from the Workers’ Party believed to be gathered in the capital Pyongyang for a political conference, North Korea watchers are saying a leadership change could be in the works. But the meeting is cloaked in secrecy, making it difficult for outsiders to determine where the nuclear-armed country is headed.

The Workers’ Party conference is the largest political gathering held in North Korea in three decades, and what happens during the meeting could have significant implications for U.S. national security concerns. But that is about all the Obama administration can determine with any certainty

MDAA Alert: The “Pearls” of Pearl Harbor

Dear Members and Friends,

The United States Navy is the strongest proponent for the global missile defense mission amongst the branches of the U.S. military. Out of the Navy’s core missions only the attack air strike and strategic nuclear capability does not involve missile defense. Protecting the fleet, international sea lanes, littoral areas including valued ports and providing ballistic missile defense against known threats, all involve the use of Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) ships. The Aegis BMD ship is essential to the U.S. Navy and ballistic missile defense is essential to the Aegis BMD Ship.