War drums: Russian general warns border conflicts could lead to ‘nuclear war’

November 17, 2011 – MOSCOW – A chilling warning of nuclear war erupting along Russia’s borders – including in Europe – came today from the Kremlin’s top military commander. General Nikolai Makarov said there could be a string of small-scale conflicts breaking out in the country. He said: ‘The possibility of local armed conflicts along nearly the whole border has increased dramatically. ‘In certain conditions, I do not rule out local and regional armed conflicts developing into a large-scale war, including using nuclear weapons.’ Makarov’s explosive words – sounding like an icy blast from the depths of the Cold War – will cause dismay and alarm in Eastern Europe. He linked the risk to former Warsaw Pact countries that have already joined NATO – and those which have expressed a willingness to join. He complained: ‘Practically all the countries of the former Warsaw Pact have become NATO members. The Baltic States that were part of the former Soviet Union have also joined the North Atlantic Alliance. Yet this year marks two decades of peace between Russia and its former Warsaw pact allies in Eastern Europe since the collapse of the USSR, and it was not immediately clear why the Kremlin’s top military figure had chosen such lurid language to characterize Moscow’s relations with its neighbors. The three Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania – which he picked out in a major speech – are minnows and do not appear to present any risk whatsoever to Moscow. Yet Russia is at odds with the U.S. over the American missile defense shield in Europe. The U.S. has also joint a NATO joint cyber command center based in Estonia. –Daily Mail excerpt

India to increase armaments on  China border: India has acquired two more Israeli-made EL/M-2075 Phalcon Airborne Warning and Control Systems, which is similar to the U.S. AWACS, to deploy on its border with China. The Phalcon system is capable of detecting troop movements, armor column divisions and cruise missiles. The Time of India also reported that the Indian army has deployed another regiment of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile, a precision-strike weapon with a range of around 200 miles for border security defense. The missiles likely will be deployed in the state of Arunachal Pradesh state in the northeast along the remote and contested border with China, the report said. BrahMos missiles are intended to counter China’s huge buildup of military infrastructure all along the 4,057-kilometer (2,500-mile) Line of Actual Control following a similar deployment along the western sector of the country facing Pakistan. 

U.S. perfects super-strike weapon: The U.S. successfully tested the second-phase of its hypersonic missile system for its Prompt Global Strike’ program- a missile defense weapon capable of striking targets anywhere in the world in about an hour. The latest weapons test was launched by a rocket from Hawaii at 1130 GMT. The “Advanced Hypersonic Weapon,” or AHW, glided through the upper atmosphere over the Pacific “at hypersonic speed” before striking its target on the Kwajalein atoll in the Marshall Islands, a Pentagon statement said. Prompt Global Strike was developed by the U.S. for a quick retaliatory response from would-be adversaries or what the U.S. considers ‘rogue or terrorist states.’ U.S. super-sonic missile technology also brings the Pentagon into the same arena with Russia, China and India who have already deployed hypersonic guided-missile technology in their weaponry. –The Extinction Protocol

contribution Amy P