Final Word from Friday, September 18, 2009
The impact of changing events in Russia and Iran on missile defense is clear, but what about China? Barack Obama made no mention of it yesterday in explaining his decision to shelve the missile shield in the CR and Poland. Yet China has spoken assertively against the U.S.'s missile-defense plans and is a more-formidable long-term threat than Russia. When Foreign Affairs printed an article in 2006 about the U.S.'s effort to gain nuclear primacy through a first-strike capability, the authors said that both Russia and China were the foes. Since then, China's military buildup has advanced considerably, and the U.S.'s means and methods of projecting power have increasingly become "wasting assets," both in military and financial terms (see Foreign Affairs). This raises the question of whether Obama's decision on missile defense wasn't as much a peace offering or concession to China as to Russia or Iran. [Czech Republic Andrew F. Krepinevich Keir Lieber Daryl Press United States]
Glossary of difficult words
to shelve - to decide not to proceed with a project or plan, either temporarily or permanently;
assertively - with confidence and forcefulness;
formidable - inspiring fear or respect by being impressively large, powerful, intense or capable;
primacy - preeminence, superiority;
first-strike capability - the ability to destroy the enemy's nuclear weapons before they can be used;
foe - enemy or opponent;
wasting assets - obsolete as a means of defending one's power and military position.