DTN News - ISRAELI DEFENSE NEWS: Setting The Record Straight By Obama And Israel

DTN News - ISRAELI DEFENSE NEWS: Setting The Record Straight By Obama And Israel
Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources By Dr. Guy Ziv - Assistant Professor of International Relations, School of International Service, American University - Huffington Post
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - March 4, 2012: When President Obama addresses the annual conference of the influential American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) next week, he will be given an important opportunity to set the record straight on his administration's handling of U.S.-Israel relations. The president's outreach to the Arab and Muslim world, as well as his policy and personal differences with Prime Minister Netanyahu, have led to charges that he is either insufficiently "pro-Israel" or downright "anti-Israel." While these critics are a minority within the American Jewish community -- Obama won 78 percent of the Jewish vote in 2008 and will likely receive similar backing in November -- they and their Christian fundamentalist allies will be present in large numbers at the AIPAC gathering, which tends to disproportionately attract hawks on Israel.

Charges against Obama's pro-Israel credentials are ill-informed but have become all the more pronounced in this election year. GOP frontrunner Mitt Romney alleged that the president "threw Israel under the bus" when he announced last May that the foundation for an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement would be a return to the pre-1967 borders, with adjustments based on demographic changes. Yet Obama's statement was consistent with more than a decade of U.S. policy dating to the Clinton Parameters of December 2000. It also echoed a widely-held view in Israel that was articulated by Netanyahu's predecessor, Ehud Olmert.

Chomping at the bit to take a swipe at Obama, former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum made a similar throwing-Israel-under-the-bus accusation, suggesting that Obama would accept a nuclear Iran in return for a continued flow of oil. Newt Gingrich has likewise entered the fray in an ironic way, accusing the administration of being "out of touch with reality" for its approach to Middle East peace, while, at the same time, repeating the old canard that the Palestinians are an "invented" people.

Obama will surely not be able to silence his critics with a speech, but he can certainly defang them by exposing their false claims and pointing to his administration's very strong record on Israel.

Contrary to the accusations leveled by Obama's critics, bilateral defense cooperation is both broader and deeper today than at any time in history. This is especially the case with respect to missile defense, where the two countries have cooperated in the creation of a three-tiered air defense system. With Iran in mind, the Obama administration signed an agreement with the Israelis in July 2010 to develop a high-altitude Arrow-3 interceptor, a long-range system designed to hit incoming missiles outside the Earth's atmosphere. A month later, the administration signed an agreement with the Israelis to jointly develop David's Sling, an air defense system designed to counter missile and rockets with ranges of 25-185 miles. In addition to the more than $200 million the administration has allocated for these state-of-the-art systems, the Obama administration has provided Israel with $205 million for the Iron Dome anti-rocket defense system, which is designed to counter short-range rocket and artillery shells from the Gaza Strip and Lebanon and has already saved Israeli lives from rocket attacks emanating from Gaza.

Unprecedented bilateral defense cooperation has also been pursued in other realms. Determined to ensure that Israel retains its status as having the most advanced fighter aircraft in the Middle East, Obama has agreed to sell Israel the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, which President Bush had refused to do. Although mechanical problems have held up their production and will therefore delay their delivery date, the Israeli defense establishment regards the purchase of these advanced combat aircraft to be of critical importance to Israel's security.

The Obama administration has also moved to strengthen force interoperability between Washington and Jerusalem. Indeed, the U.S. armed forces and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) will conduct the largest joint exercises in the history of U.S.-Israel relations later this year. The "Austere Challenge 12" drills will test new ballistic missile and rocket defense capabilities and improve the capacity of the U.S. and Israeli militaries to operate together.

To be sure, the Obama administration has raised serious concerns about the wisdom of the Netanyahu government's purported inclination to preemptively strike Iran's nuclear facilities this spring. But these concerns are shared, also, by the last two Mossad chiefs, Meir Dagan and Ephraim Halevy, former IDF intelligence head Shlomo Gazit, and a bevy of other Israeli and American security experts. Notwithstanding the president's skepticism of an Israeli military strike against Iran, the administration has been working in "lockstep" with Israel to prevent Iran from going nuclear. Nor has the president ruled out a military operation against Iran; rather, he continues to stress that all options remain on the table and that Iran must not be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon.

The Obama administration also has imposed the toughest sanctions on Iran to date and, significantly, won support for tough sanctions from some formerly reticent European allies. In February, Obama signed the executive order approving sanctions on Iran's Central Bank, adding to the growing list of sanctions on Iran. Shortly thereafter, the Treasury Department added Iran's Ministry of Intelligence and Security to its list of global terrorists, thereby freezing their assets in the United States, barring Americans from conducting business with it, and banning ministry employees from travel to the United States. According to Dennis Ross, who has served five administrations -- he recently stepped down as a senior Middle East adviser to President Obama -- the sanctions are working.

Obama also has been a champion of Israel in international diplomatic forums. From condemning Palestinian incitement against Israel to vetoing anti-Israel resolutions in the UN, Obama has consistently worked to combat efforts at delegitimizing Israel. Most significantly, last fall he opposed the Palestinian request for UN admission as a state, arguing that a Palestinian state can only emerge from negotiations with Israel. According to Robert Satloff of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, Obama delivered "one of the most impassioned statements in support of Israel ever made by an American president at the [United Nations] General Assembly."

In terms of tangible contributions to Israel's security, Israel has a solid friend in President Obama. Long-term security for Israel, however, will not come from military equipment and diplomatic support alone. Obama has yet to deliver what Israel needs most: a peace deal with the Palestinians. Although the Israeli and Palestinian leaders are largely to blame for the stalemate in the peace process, U.S. engagement on this issue -- including pressuring both sides to compromise -- on a sustained basis and at the highest level is critical if a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is to be realized. This is not what the AIPAC crowd wants to hear, but it is what any true friend of Israel in the White House needs to do.

*Link for This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources By Dr. Guy Ziv - Assistant Professor of International Relations, School of International Service, American University - Huffington Post
*Speaking Image - Creation of DTN News ~ Defense Technology News 
*This article is being posted from Toronto, Canada By DTN News ~ Defense-Technology News Contact:dtnnews@ymail.com 
©COPYRIGHT (C) DTN NEWS DEFENSE-TECHNOLOGY NEWS

DTN News - ISRAEL DEFENSE NEWS: Boeing And Israel Aerospace Industries Mark 10 Years Of Cooperation

DTN News - ISRAEL DEFENSE NEWS: Boeing And Israel Aerospace Industries Mark 10 Years Of Cooperation
>Companies extend work agreement on Arrow Weapon System
>Arrow 3 next step in Israel's national missile defense strategy
Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources  Boeing
 (NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - January 27, 2012: The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] today announced that it has renewed its work agreement with Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) on the Arrow Weapon System, and enhanced the IAI-Boeing Strategic Teaming Agreement to explore and develop new opportunitiesin the missile defense arena. Leaders of both companies gathered at IAI headquarters in Tel Aviv on Jan. 19 for a signing ceremony that also marked the 10th anniversary of the Boeing and IAI partnership.

"The Arrow program demonstrates Boeing's commitment to developing international missile defense partnerships around the globe," said Boeing Network & Space Systems President Roger Krone. "We are pleased to mark this 10-year milestone by expanding our cooperation on missile defense initiatives with our partner IAI."

Over the past 10 years, Arrow, the world's first operational national missile defense system, has become a vital anti-ballistic-missile defense strategy for Israel's national defense. IAI is the prime contractor for the Arrow Weapon System. It initiated, developed and deployed the in-service Arrow 2 program and, together with Boeing, is developing the Arrow 3 system -- a crucial asset in Israel's multi-tier anti-ballistic-missile defense strategy.

"This new agreement is the next logical step in our relationship with Boeing and a strong opportunity for both companies to play a bigger role in the missile defense market. It is based on a strong foundation of successful cooperation," said Itzhak Nissan, IAI president and CEO.

"Boeing's relationship with IAI has produced an innovative, versatile and affordable advanced missile defense capability. We look forward to our continued partnership and the development of the next generation of Arrow interceptor," said Greg Hyslop, vice president and general manager of Boeing Strategic Missile and Defense Systems.

The Arrow program has been a cooperative effort between the U.S. Missile Defense Agency and the Israel Missile Defense Organization since 2002.

A unit of The Boeing Company, Boeing Defense, Space & Security is one of the world's largest defense, space and security businesses specializing in innovative and capabilities-driven customer solutions, and the world's largest and most versatile manufacturer of military aircraft. Headquartered in St. Louis, Boeing Defense, Space & Security is a $32 billion business with 63,000 employees worldwide. Follow us on Twitter: @BoeingDefense.

Contact:

Scott Day
Strategic Missile and Defense Systems
Office: +1 703-872-4206
Mobile: +1 703-403-3083
scott.day2@boeing.com

*Link for This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources Boeing 
*Speaking Image - Creation of DTN News ~ Defense Technology News 
*This article is being posted from Toronto, Canada By DTN News ~ Defense-Technology News Contact:dtnnews@ymail.com 
©COPYRIGHT (C) DTN NEWS DEFENSE-TECHNOLOGY NEWS

DTN News: Israel Assembles Advanced Missile Defense Systems

DTN News: Israel Assembles Advanced Missile Defense Systems *Source: DTN News / Defense News (Click here for link)

(NSI News Source Info) ASHKELON, Israel - September 19, 2009: As Israel pushes for international action against Iran's nuclear program, it is steadily assembling one of the world's most advanced missile defense systems, a multilayered collection of weapons meant to guard against everything from the shorter-range Grads that have been used to strike Israeli towns such as this one to intercontinental rockets. Israel is making progress on the lowest level of its four-tiered anti-missile system. This tier is dubbed Iron Dome. The other elements of the system for countering ballistic threats are on the second level David’s Sling on which I reported earlier and Patriot missile batteries. The air force is currently considering upgrading the batteries to the newer PAC-3 model. Israel has a number of U.S.-supplied Patriot PAC-3 left over from the 2003 Iraq war. Levels three and four will be made up by Arrow and Arrow 2 systems, respectively. The effort, partly financed by the United States and incorporating advanced U.S. radar and other technology, has been progressing quietly for two decades but now has reached a level of maturity that Israeli defense and other analysts say could begin changing strategic decisions in the region. Centered on the already-deployed Arrow 2 antimissile system, it is being extended to include a longer-range Arrow 3, the David's Sling rocket designed to hit lower- and slower-flying cruise missiles, and the Iron Dome system intended to destroy Grads, Katyushas, Qassams and other shorter-range projectiles fired from the Gaza Strip and southern Lebanon. With the Arrow system in operation and the Iron Dome due for deployment next year, Israel "has something to stabilize the situation: the knowledge that an attack will fail," said Uzi Rubin, a private defense consultant who ran Israel's missile defense program in the 1990s. Iran, he said, could not be assured of a successful first strike against Israel, while groups such as Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon may find one of their favored tactics undermined. Advances in Iran's rocket technology, coupled with its ongoing nuclear program, are chief concerns of the United States and Europe, as well as of Israel and other Middle Eastern countries. Alongside diplomatic efforts to convince Iran to curb its nuclear research, missile defense programs have been designed with Iran explicitly in mind. The Obama administration this week decided to scrap a Bush-era plan to deploy a longer-range antimissile system in the Czech Republic and Poland, and said it would move toward a more intermediate system that better matches its assessment of what Iran can do. In Israel, the issue is considered one of the country's highest foreign-policy priorities. There have been varying Israeli assessments about Iran's progress toward a nuclear weapon: Although the head of the Mossad intelligence agency told a Knesset committee this summer that Iran may be five years away from acquiring a bomb, the head of military intelligence has said it could happen by the end of the year. But Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu takes it as an imminent threat. Iran's program "is something that threatens Israel and threatens the region and threatens the peace of the world," Netanyahu said during a recent visit to Germany. "There is not much time." A recent unannounced trip by Netanyahu to Russia was thought by some analysts here to be linked with the broad set of issues surrounding Iran, including Russia's possible sale of advanced antiaircraft missiles to the country and the likelihood that Israel will strike Iran's nuclear facilities if the United States and Europe cannot find another solution. The steady growth of the country's missile defenses also sheds a different light on Israel's military doctrine and sense of vulnerability. Defense Minister Ehud Barak said this week that he did not consider Iran's nuclear program an "existential issue" because "Israel is strong." Part of that strength lies in its own nuclear capabilities -- never acknowledged but widely presumed to exist -- and part lies in the assumption that the United States would stand behind the country if it came under attack. But it also rests in the calculation that enough of the country's air bases and other military facilities would survive a first strike that it would be able to effectively retaliate. The sort of deterrence -- guaranteed retaliation -- that the United States and Russia once achieved by deploying nuclear warheads in submarines and keeping bombers aloft is what Israel is striving for through its antimissile systems. Iran "is radical, but radical does not mean irrational," said Rubin, the private defense consultant. "They want to change the world, not commit suicide." The program has its origins in the 1980s and concern about Syria's suspected acquisition of chemical weapons. It took on added urgency in the Persian Gulf War, when nearly 40 Iraqi scud missiles hit the Tel Aviv area. The Arrow was deployed in 2000, and since then Israel and the United States have conducted a biennial joint missile defense exercise, called Juniper Cobra, to work on integrating the weapons, radar and other systems of the two countries. Israel, for example, now has the advanced U.S. X-Band radar stationed in the Negev desert. Israeli defense industry officials say the country also has virtually real-time access to some U.S. satellite data, an important piece of its early-warning system. The next joint exercise is scheduled for October. As concern shifted to the threat of long-range missiles from Iran -- the countries lie a little more than 700 miles from each other at the closest point, well within the known range of Iranian rockets -- it also focused on the shorter-range weapons that Hezbollah and Hamas have turned on Israel in the past few years. The barrages fired by Hezbollah at northern Israel during the 2006 Israel-Lebanon war led officials to accelerate work on a short-range defense system, as did recent Grad strikes against Ashkelon, a Mediterranean city of more than 122,000 and site of major electricity, desalinization and other facilities. As it stands, "we have no defenses, no shelters, no public buildings being protected," said Alan Marcus, the city's director of strategic planning and architect of a response plan developed to cope with some 80 missile strikes since 2006. "What do we do? Close the beach and tell people there might be a missile attack?" Beginning next year, Israeli defense officials say, the Iron Dome system should provide some relief. The mobile launchers initially will be placed around towns and facilities near the Gaza Strip but may ultimately be deployed throughout the country. The system is not without controversy. It has not, for example, proved effective against mortars and could leave the towns closest to the border areas vulnerable, including such chief targets as Sderot. Critics have pushed for other systems, including a chemical laser that Israel was jointly developing with the United States, or the rapid-fire Phalanx guns that can be used to protect important facilities such as power plants. There is also concern that groups such as Hamas could try to overwhelm the system by firing large barrages of comparatively cheap, homemade Qassams, perhaps not expecting to do damage so much as forcing Israel to spend tens of thousands of dollars a shot to knock them down. But Israeli officials say they see systems like Iron Dome as crucial to the country's military planning, both by preventing damage and diminishing the need to retaliate. Though many of the rockets fired by Hamas and Hezbollah land on empty ground, "one of these times one of the Qassams will hit a bus, and then the government will have to make a decision" about how to react, said Israel Defense Ministry spokesman Shlomo Dror. "There is a bigger issue here than how much it costs. It is going to give us some answers."

DTN News: Security And Defense ~ Israel Goes Ballistic

DTN News: Security And Defense ~ Israel Goes Ballistic

*Source: DTN News / The Jerusalem Post By Yaakov Katz

(NSI News Source Info) JERUSALEM, Israel - September 13, 2009: On Sunday, the USS Higgins hauled up its anchor and sailed out of Haifa Port where it had docked for a short visit. An Arleigh Burke class destroyer - one of the largest and most powerful naval vessels built in the United States - the Higgins is one of 18 American ships with an Aegis interceptor system, capable of destroying enemy ballistic missiles above the atmosphere. (Image: An Arrow 2 missile test.) In just a few weeks, additional Aegis vessels will arrive here to participate in the biennial Juniper Cobra missile defense exercise that the IDF has been holding with the US European Command (EUCOM) and Missile Defense Agency since 2001. This year's drill, scheduled for mid-October, is being described as the largest joint exercise ever held by the countries. During it they will jointly test four ballistic missile defense systems. In addition to the Aegis, the MDA and EUCOM are sending THAAD and Patriot 3 missile defense systems - America's most-advanced - for the first time. While the Higgins has not yet needed to use its Aegis system to intercept missiles fired into Israel, its crew is intimately familiar with the country's various security issues, particularly along the northern border. The ship is named for US Marine Col. William R. Higgins, who was kidnapped by Hizbullah in southern Lebanon in 1988, while serving as a commander of a UN peacekeeping mission. In August 1989, a cell linked to Hizbullah murdered him in response to the IDF kidnapping of Sheikh Abdul Karim Obeid, a senior cleric and leader of the guerrilla group who was involved in the kidnapping. His body was dumped, over a year later, on a Beirut side street. Israel had planned to use Obeid to obtain information regarding the fate of IAF navigator Ron Arad. Obeid was released in 2004 in exchange for the bodies of three soldiers - kidnapped in October 2000 - as well as shady businessman Elhanan Tannenbaum, in a large prisoner swap with Hizbullah. The cooperation between Israel and the US on missile defense dates back to the mid-1980s when they began to jointly develop the Arrow missile defense system. Since then, the US government has spent close to $3 billion on the Arrow, which is manufactured by Israel Aerospace Industries and Boeing. Earlier this year, Congress approved additional funding for the development of the Arrow 3, a larger version with greater range and the capability of intercepting missiles at higher altitudes. The cooperation peaked ahead of the 1991 Gulf War when the first Bush administration sent Patriot missile batteries to help defend the country against Saddam Hussein's Scud missile attacks. Last October, the Bush administration gave Israel a farewell gift in the form of the X-Band radar, which is deployed in the Negev and is capable of detecting targets thousands of miles away, providing five to seven minutes of warning before an Iranian missile strikes. This is in contrast to the 10 seconds the residents of Sderot have when a Kassam rocket is launched from the Gaza Strip. Juniper Cobra, senior defense officials said this week, is aimed at creating infrastructure in case Israel is attacked and the US decides to send the Aegis or THAAD to bolster the Arrow. The exercise spans several days and involves hundreds of Israeli and American soldiers, mostly from the air force. The primary focus of the Juniper Cobra exercise held in 2007, for example, was integrating the lower-altitude US Patriot missile systems with the higher-altitude Arrow-2. This year, the integration will focus on improving the interoperability between the Arrow, THAAD and Aegis. Officials said that the exercise may include live fire by the systems - most likely the Patriot - but the teams will mainly conduct computerized simulations of various threat scenarios launched from fictitious countries. The threats are then tracked and engaged by the various systems and the teams jointly write doctrine and staff procedures. For Israel, the exercise could not have come at a more important time. Since the beginning of the year, Iran has made some impressive leaps with its ballistic missile development, culminating with the February launch of its first homemade satellite - called Omid - as well as the successful launch in May of a new missile, the Sajil, that has a range of more than 2,000 kilometers, easily reaching most of Eastern Europe. This is impressive considering that just 10 years ago, the Iranians only had Scud B and C missiles. Today, they have their own production line of Shihabs and Sajils, for which they are building underground silos. In addition, Israeli assessments are that the Iranians will soon be capable of independently manufacturing their own version of the BM25 missile which they received from North Korea and has a range of more than 3,000 km. According to the assessments, the launch of the Omid demonstrates that Iranian scientists have also made breakthroughs in guidance technology which has also likely been applied to its ballistic missiles. According to Uzi Rubin, founder of the Arrow missile and a former head of the Homa Missile Defense Agency, Iran can also take unguided rockets like the Zelzal - which are also in Hizbullah's hands - and turn them into guided rockets with ranges topping 220 km. "This is an original Iranian project; we don't see it anywhere else," Rubin noted in a recent briefing at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. The second major breakthrough is in the propulsion systems, which Iran has succeeded in upgrading from liquid to solid fuel. The main difference is that a missile that operates on liquid fuel needs to be fueled very close to launch, making it easier to discover with surveillance satellites or hovering aircraft. Solid-fuel missiles have a significantly longer shelf life and can be stored in underground silos for a long time, allowing the Iranians to just lift their cover and launch. It is not an easy task though to assess Iran's progress in missile development. On May 19, the EastWest Institute, a New York-based think tank that monitors global security, issued a report claiming that there was "no reliable information" on Iran's success in developing a solid fuel rocket. The next day, on May 20, Iran test fired the Sajil, proving without a doubt that it had independently mastered the capability. These developments indicate as possible reversal in roles between Iran and North Korea. If Teheran bought technology from Pyongyang two decades ago, today the flow of technology is believed to have reversed.

DTN News: U.S. May 'Redeploy BDM In Israel'

DTN News: U.S. May 'Redeploy BDM In Israel' *Source: DTN News / Int'l Media (NSI News Source Info) TEL AVIV, Israel - September 10, 2009: Israeli officials say there is a "strong possibility" that the United States will leave missile defense systems in the Jewish state after a joint missile defense exercise planned for October is concluded, according to The Jerusalem Post. The THAAD weapon system consists of launchers, missiles, battle management / command, control, communications and intelligence (BMC3I) units and THAAD radars. The U.S. missiles, part of the Ballistic Defense Program, would almost certainly remain under U.S. control, but it was not clear whether they would participate in defending Israel against Iranian missiles. The report indicated that the Americans may deploy the missiles in Israel rather than in the Czech Republic and Poland as planned, in deference to Russia's vehement objections to having U.S. missile systems so close to its border. The Israeli report published Monday followed an Aug. 27 report in the Warsaw newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza that Washington planned to scrap its plans to base 10 interceptor missiles in Poland and an advanced radar in the Czech Republic to counter hostile missiles aimed at the United States, with Iran seen as the most likely threat. U.S. President Barack Obama's administration is seeking to find an accommodation with a resurgent Russia on a host of issues, including having Moscow stop aiding Iran's nuclear program and providing it with advanced weapons systems that could impede any potential pre-emptive military strike. By removing the planned anti-missile shield from Central Europe and relocating it is elsewhere -- Israel and Turkey have been seen as the most likely candidates -- Washington could expect a quid pro quo from Moscow. In this case, that would likely be blocking the sale of advanced Russian S-300 air-defense missiles to Iran or supporting U.S. efforts to impose harsh new economic sanctions on Iran to force it to abandon its alleged quest for nuclear arms. However, by redeploying the missiles in Israel, the Americans would be seen to be bolstering the Jewish state's anti-missile defenses against a possible Iranian strike with its Shehab-3 ballistic missiles. The Shehabs -- Iran is believed to have 80-100 operational -- are expected to be bolstered by more powerful Sajjil-2 missiles now being developed. By adding U.S. weight to Israel's own anti-ballistic defenses, namely the high-altitude, long-range Arrow-2 interceptor, Washington would be involving itself directly in the defense of Israel. That would thus raise the stakes to an unprecedented degree in the event of an Iranian attack, either a first strike initiated by Tehran or one retaliating for a pre-emptive Israeli attack on the Islamic Republic. Israel, which considers Iran's nuclear and missile development as an existential threat, is widely perceived to be considering a unilateral pre-emptive strike against Iran. The Americans already have a long-range X-Band radar unit operating in Israel. The radar, a key element in the U.S. missile defense array, is intended to give Israel early warning of an Iranian missile launch. The unit was set up at Nevatim Air Base in the Negev Desert a year ago at the request of the Israeli government and is operated by 100 U.S. personnel. It would be linked to the U.S. missile systems if they are deployed in Israel. The Jerusalem Post reported that "while the United States has yet to announce it will leave the systems in place here, the possibility is strong, one official said, particularly in light of reports that the Pentagon was conducting a review of its European missile shield." The daily noted that a "senior Israeli defense official" said that "while the United States has not made an official request to deploy the systems here, the topic was being discussed in unofficial channels." The upcoming exercises, codenamed Juniper Cobra, will involve the Arrow-2 system along with the U.S. Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense system and the ship-based Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System. Meantime, Iran claimed Sunday that it has developed a missile defense system that can shoot down radar-evading cruise missiles. But Western analysts were skeptical. They questioned why Iran was so anxious to acquire Russian S-300s to defend its strategic installations if it was capable of producing its own defense systems.

DTN News: Israeli Missile-Defense System Hits Snag

DTN News: Israeli Missile-Defense System Hits Snag

*Source: DTN News / AP (NSI News Source Info) JERUSALEM, Israel - July 24, 2009: A joint U.S.-Israeli missile defense system meant to shield Israel from Iranian attack hit a snag when a series of tests were aborted because of malfunctions, defense officials said Thursday. This file photo, taken on Friday Dec. 2, 2005, released by Israel Aircraft Industries Ltd., shows an Arrow missile being launched at an undisclosed location in Israel. Israeli defense officials say three tests in the U.S. of the missile defense system meant to shield Israel from Iranian attack have been aborted over the past week. (AP Photo/Israel Aircraft Industries, File) The Arrow, a joint project between state-run Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd. and Chicago-based Boeing Co., is part of a multilayered missile-defense system Israel is working on to protect it from all forms of attack, ranging from short-range rocket fire from Lebanon and Gaza to longer-range missiles from Iran. Israel sees Iran as its biggest threat because of its nuclear program and development of medium-range ballistic missiles. Those fears have been compounded by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's persistent anti-Israeli rhetoric. Israel's concerns were heightened this week when U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the U.S. would extend a "defense umbrella" over its Gulf Arab allies to prevent Iran from dominating the region "once they have a nuclear weapon." The comments raised eyebrows in Israel. "I was not thrilled to hear the American statement from yesterday that they will protect their allies with a nuclear umbrella, as if they have already come to terms with a nuclear Iran," Dan Meridor, Israel's minister of intelligence and atomic energy, told Army Radio. "I think that's a mistake." Hours after Meridor spoke, Clinton clarified her remarks, saying she was "not suggesting any new policy" on Iran and continued to believe that "Iran's pursuit of nuclear weapons is unacceptable." Israeli officials and analysts played down the glitches in the Arrow tests, saying they were expected in such a complicated project and would not affect the long-term development of the system. A statement from the Pentagon's Missile Defense Agency said the mission was an interception test and also exercised the Arrow system's interoperability with other elements of the U.S. ballistic missile defense system. The tests of the Arrow II system took place over the past week off the coast of California, most recently on Wednesday, the defense officials said. But communication glitches between the missile and the radar led U.S. defense officials to abort the test before an intercepting missile could be fired, they said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to disclose details of the tests. The Pentagon said the target missile was dropped from a C-17 aircraft. It said the radar system detected the target, but "not all test conditions to launch the Arrow Interceptor were met, and it was not launched." It said the results were being analyzed. An operational version of Arrow II is partially deployed, and the U.S. and Israel are in the preliminary stages of developing an upgraded Arrow III. The homegrown "Iron Dome" system is designed to bring down short-range rockets of the kind Palestinian and Lebanese militants use. Last week, Israeli officials reported a successful live test of the system. The Arrow project was spurred largely by the failure of the U.S. military's Patriot missiles to intercept Iraqi Scud rockets that struck Israel in the 1991 Gulf War. Israeli Defense Ministry spokesman Shlomo Dror said tests of the same Arrow system in Israel earlier this year were "very successful." He said the recent tests were carried out in the U.S. because that would allow for greater distances than would be possible in Israel. He said malfunctions of systems still in their experimental stage were to be expected and said other tests were called off on Friday and Monday. The defense officials said the improved Arrow II was meant to intercept a dummy Iranian Shihab missile, which is capable of carrying a nuclear warhead. But U.S. officials blocked the launch of an intercepting missile because of the communications glitch, the Israelis said. Iran's Shihab-3 has a range of up to 1,250 miles (2,000 kilometers), putting Israel well within striking distance. Isaac Ben-Israel, a retired general and weapons expert, said the interceptor wasn't fired because it is too expensive to use in a test that isn't expected to go according to plan. He said such glitches are common when developing new systems and he did not consider it a significant setback. "I expect that within a short period of time, after they determine exactly what happened, they will repeat this experiment and then we will know if it works or not," Ben-Israel said.

Boeing-IAI Missile Defense Interceptor Shoots Down Target In Test

Boeing-IAI Missile Defense Interceptor Shoots Down Target In Test

(NSI News Source Info) HUNTSVILLE, Ala. - April 30, 2009: The Boeing Company built part of the Arrow II interceptor that successfully shot down a ballistic missile target April 7 in a test of Israel's national missile defense system. The operationally realistic test, conducted in Israel by the Israel Ministry of Defense and the U.S. Missile Defense Agency, used an interceptor co-produced by Boeing and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and equipped with new capability enhancements. "This successful test underscores the effectiveness of the cooperative relationship we have forged with IAI on the Arrow program and other international missile defense initiatives," said Greg Hyslop, vice president and general manager of Boeing Missile Defense Systems. "Boeing is proud to co-produce Arrow II interceptors, which provide the state of Israel with a proven defense capability against ballistic missile threats." The event marked the co-produced Arrow II's second intercept in two attempts, as well as its third successful flight test. The Arrow II is part of the Arrow Weapon System, which Israel and the United States have jointly developed to defend Israel against the growing threat of short- and medium-range ballistic missiles. Under an agreement with IAI, the prime contractor for the Arrow Weapon System, Boeing provides several Arrow II interceptor components, including the Section II electronics assembly (part of the avionics and guidance subsystem); the nose cone; the canister assembly that houses the interceptor; electrical subsystems; and motor cases. IAI is responsible for system integration and final interceptor assembly in Israel. Boeing's major suppliers on Arrow II are Alliant-Techsystems (ATK) of Iuka, Miss., and Clearfield, Utah; Manes Machine, of Fort Collins, Colo.; Patterson Machine, of Union Grove, Ala.; and Sanmina-SCI, of Huntsville, Ala.

Isreal Tested Arrow Interceptor Successfully: Reports

Isreal Tested Arrow Interceptor Successfully: Reports

(NSI News Source Info) JERUSALEM - April 7, 2009: Israel successfully tested its Arrow ballistic missile interception system April 7, a costly project launched two decades ago aimed at countering strikes mainly from Iran. Diagram showing stages of missile interception by the Arrow ATBM System. The picture shows a hostile missile trajectory and that of the Black Sparrow air-launched target missile used in firing tests. The Arrow (Hetz in Hebrew) intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile comparable to Iran's Shahab-3, which can reach the Jewish state, that was fired by an Israeli fighter plane over the Mediterranean, a defense official said. "This morning, the Arrow system performed a successful test," the defense ministry said in a statement. "The success of the project marks a key step in its development plan and the improvement of the operational systems to offer a response to the growing threat of ballistic missiles in the region." Defense Minister Ehud Barak, who watched the test from a helicopter, said that together with a number of other rocket and missile interception systems being developed, the Arrow project "will offer optimal protection from near and immediate strategic threats," the ministry statement said. An Arrow Weapon System battery has four or eight launch trailers, each with six launch tubes and missiles, a Launch Control Centre, a communications centre, a fire control centre and the units of a mobile Green Pine radar system. It was the latest successful test of the Arrow, a project launched in 1988 during the now-defunct Star Wars program under then-U.S. President Reagan. Arrow was stepped up after Israel was hit by 39 Iraqi Scud missiles during the Gulf War. Development of the Arrow is now half-funded by the United States. Israel has carried out more than a dozen successful tests of the Arrow under various conditions. Israel considers Iran to be its arch-foe following repeated statements by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for the Jewish state to be wiped off the map. Israel, widely considered to be the Middle East's sole nuclear armed state, and Washington suspect Iran of trying to develop atomic weapons under the guise of its civilian nuclear program, a charge Tehran has repeatedly denied.