Curt Weldon :: Curt Weldon, Emerging Missile Threats Demand U.S. Response :: February

Curt Weldon, Emerging Missile Threats Demand U.S. Response
By REPRESENTATIVE CURT WELDON

Reports indicate that Iran is on the verge of completing another test of its medium-range ballistic missile, the Shahab-3, capable of striking Israel and American troops stationed in the Persian Gulf region. Similarly, Iran is continuing its development of the Shahab-4 missile, which will bring virtually all of Europe within its range, and is planning a test of a new surface to sea missile that could pose a serious threat to U.S. and Israeli naval ships.

Frighteningly, neither Israel nor the United States military has any defensive systems in place that are capable of countering these missiles. Simply put, every Israeli and every U.S. military personnel stationed in the Gulf is currently defenseless against these missiles if Iran decides to use them.

In the future, rogue nations - such as Iran, Iraq, and North Korea - will continue to aggressively pursue advanced ballistic missile technology that poses a great danger to U.S. troops and our allies. Without proper defenses in place to counter this missile threat, America’s national security policy could effectively be held hostage by the leaders of rogue nations. The United States should take a two-pronged approach to counter this threat.

First, the United States must be aggressive in our enforcement of arms control treaties and existing laws. We must place sanctions on countries (such as Russia and China) and other proliferating entities that engage in the transfer of advanced missile technology or nuclear capabilities to these rogue states.

Unfortunately, the Clinton- Gore Administration has been unwilling to take this approach. For example, the United States has strong evidence that Russia on sixteen separate occasions has violated the Missile Technology Control

Regime (MTCR) and various other treaties and laws by transferring sensitive technologies to nations such as Iran and Iraq. We believe Russia has transferred detailed instructions to Iran on the production of medium-range ballistic missiles, provided assistance to Iran in the development of biological weapons, transferred engine and guidance systems for Iranian missiles between 1,300 and 10,000 km, and smuggled gyroscopes from submarine launched ballistic missiles to Iraq. President Clinton refused to impose sanctions for any of these violations.

Similar incidents involving China have also gone unpunished. China has transferred anti-ship cruise missiles, air-launched cruise missiles, dual-use biological items, chemical weapons production technology, gyroscopes, accelerometers, and other missile guidance equipment to Iran. China even provided telemetry equipment to Iran for its development of the Shahab-3 and Shahab-4. Again, no sanctions were imposed.

We cannot allow this to continue. The United States must impose sanctions on these countries in order to send a strong message that we will not tolerate their sharing of technology with rogue nations that will put our military personnel and allies such as Israel at greater risk.

Unsatisfied with the Clinton-Gore Administration’s handling of this serious problem, Congress has been forced to step in. Last year, the House and Senate approved the Iran Missile Proliferation Act that required President Clinton to impose sanctions on Russian entities involved in proliferation to Iran. The legislation was promptly vetoed by the President, despite overwhelming support by Congress - only twenty-six Senators and Congressmen opposed the bill.

The President’s pleading and assurances that he could resolve the problem diplomatically convinced Congressional leadership not to override his veto. His diplomatic efforts, however, have failed and Congress was forced to revisit the issue this year. Just last month, the House unanimously approved the Iran Nonproliferation Act, which imposes new financial sanctions on proliferating entities within Russia. It is pathetic that presidential dithering and hand-wringing has forced Congress to act to protect our security interests. Sanctions, in the future, must be aggressively pursued by the President. It should not take an act of Congress to punish those who endanger the national security of the United States and our allies by transferring these dangerous technologies to our enemies.

Additionally, we must continue to provide funding for theater missile defense systems that will meet this threat. Potentially-hostile nations continue to make advances in the development of more accurate missile technology and more deadly chemical, biological, or nuclear warheads. The United States therefore must pursue new defensive systems that have greater and greater success rates. Similarly, our defensive systems must have an increased range so that they can destroy incoming missiles as soon as they are launched. That will ensure that the devastating effects of any biological, chemical, or nuclear warhead will fall upon those who launched the missile, not upon our troops and allies.

Again, it has been Congress that has been forced to step in and take action to address this issue in the face of a foot-dragging Clinton-Gore Administration. Realizing the imminent missile threat and our lack of adequate defenses against the Iranian missile threat, Congress approved $179 million in emergency funding last year to enhance U.S. defensive capabilities - to protect both American troops and allies such as Israel- as quickly and efficiently as possible. Later that year, Congress added $1 billion in emergency funding to beef up our missile defenses. This year, Congress continued our efforts to boost our theater missile defense systems adding more than $300 million in funding to the President’s budget request for missile defense.

Missile proliferation will continue to be one of the greatest threats to the national security of the United States and our allies. Regrettably, the Clinton-Gore Administration continues to take a head-in-the-sand approach. This is no time, however, for inattentive leadership. We must meet this threat head-on by pursuing strong defensive systems and by punishing those nations that assist rogue states in their pursuit of deadlier weapons. With the lives of thousands of American troops and the residents of nations such as Israel at risk, it would be unconscionable for us to do otherwise.

This essay by Congressman Curt Weldon originally appeared in the Jackson Award Dinner program, distributed at the Jewish National Security Affairs (JINSA) Annual event on October 25, 1999. Congressman Weldon received the HENRY M. JACKSON DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARD at the dinner.

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