The US military, stationed around the world, due to the development of a number of weapons systems, are becoming extremely vulnerable to attacks. This conclusion was made in the American Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments (CSBA), which specializes in American defense policy, force planning and budgets.
The Americans today have more than 800 military bases, which since 1945 have been considered the most protected and safe places on earth. The Pentagon for a long time could not even come up with any threats for them and seriously considered a limited strike with ballistic and cruise missiles of “rogue states”, for example, the DPRK and Iran. However, CSBA experts are forced to state that the world has changed rapidly, and the number of threats has increased significantly.
Do not respond to new calls
CSBA experts believe that the defense system of American foreign bases will not cope not only with a large number of missiles, but also with unmanned aerial vehicles, which are used in large numbers even by militants. Experts have great claims to the air and missile defense systems, created during the Cold War and stopped in development, whilewhile there was a serious progress in the modernization of the strike capabilities of various weapons systems. For example, the Patriot anti-aircraft missile systems in Saudi Arabia were unable to repel the drone attack of the Yemeni Houthis. The Americans themselves were unable to effectively resist Iran’s missile strikes on a base in Iraq in January 2020 after the assassination of a general Qasem Suleimani.
Analysts propose to protect military bases from attacks using the concept of multi-layer missile defense with the use of advanced technologies. To do this, it is proposed to combine into a single network unmanned aerial vehicles with powerful sensors that will cruise offline on possible cruise missile routes, as well as track ballistic targets and transmit data to other platforms.
It is also proposed to use fighter jets and drones with long-range air-to-air interceptor missiles. Their task is to intercept ballistic targets on the upper stages of the trajectory and destroy cruise missiles on the distant approaches to the base. Some of the drones will be equipped with advanced solid-fuel lasers with a power of 100 to 150 kilowatts, which will be able to shoot down aircraft and ammunition in line-of-sight conditions.
Great hopes are pinned on weapons based on new physical principles, which will help secure American bases, complementing the existing air and missile defense systems. According to CSBA analysts, such a configuration of foreign bases will create an insurmountable border with a radius of up to 460 kilometers.
Combat lasers and microwaves
The bet, for example, on ground-based laser installations, as well as microwave weapons, looks logical, but such defensive complexes are still under development. However, according to the plans, by 2022, the Pentagon should receive the first samples of a 300-kilowatt ground-based laser. This is a powerful system that is guaranteed to destroy drones, cruise missiles and manned aircraft. It is important that it is effective from an economic point of view. The cost of the Patriot anti-aircraft missile system is about five million, while one laser salvo will cost $ 100.
By 2024, the US army will receive THOR (Tactical High Power Operational Responder) microwave guns that create a powerful electromagnetic pulse. These weapons will effectively fight flocks of small drones and cruise missiles, disabling their complex electronics. At the last line of defense, it is proposed to use M109 artillery installations, for which a promising hypersonic projectile HVP (Hyper-Velocity Projectile) is being developed. This versatile munition can also be used on air targets, creating dense clouds of metal fragments in front of the missiles.
Main enemy
As the main threat, American analysts point to China. According to their estimates, the Chinese army has 1,200 short-range ballistic missiles and 200-300 rounds of ammunition capable of reaching the second island chain in the South China Sea, where the disputed territories are located. In addition, Beijing has a thousand land-based cruise missiles with a range of at least 1,500 kilometers. According to the Pentagon, a serious threat to American bases is represented by a fleet of Chinese H-6 strategic bombers, and in the future, H-20 stealth aircraft, which will be able to strike even on the territory of the United States.
Russia is a threat to the Pentagon’s military facilities in Europe, the agency believes. Moscow has a large arsenal of tactical nuclear weapons, short-range ballistic complexes (Iskander-M), and a wide range of ground -, sea -, and air-launched cruise missiles. Washington is particularly concerned about Russia’s latest hypersonic strike systems.