At a G8 workshop at the SWP on wednesday, I had the pleasure of speaking with the Canadian Scientist Anthony Seaboyer. We briefly talked about Russia and the defense shield. He told me that the American defense shield is in practical terms very useless.
It is virtually impossible to create a shield that could keep off hostile rockets loaded with nuclear heads. For instance, if the attacking rocket split up to form several rocket heads, or by cooling down the rocket, or by creating distractions through devices resembling parachutes, it is already very easy to avoid being hit by counter-missiles. His theory was that the missile defense system is simply a huge job program for the American defense industry.
And the Russian response in my opinion can be seen under the same terms. I don’t know why the Russians think that the defense shield is in any way a threat to them, with nuclear heads in abundance of both sides of the ocean, a hot war between Russia and the USA surely won’t be using the small rockets being placed in Poland and other Eastern European countries. But it gives the stimulus to channel gas money into the national defense industry.