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Mr. Putin’s other major concern would be that such a deployment by the U.S. obviously puts us in a position to decide who else in the world gets to launch ballistic missiles, including space-launch vehicles. Even when Britain ruled the waves in the 19th century after its victory over Napoleon, the Royal Navy did not have the capability to sail back and forth in front of all the world’s ports and decide who did and did not get to use the seas. Yet a spacebased kinetic-intercept system would give us a capacity akin to that—the ability to limit others’ access to space. And Russian leaders would know that we could maintain the ability to launch enough small satellites in relatively short order to cover northern latitudes as well, if we were to withdraw from the treaty.

Every two-bit rogue is moving sharply to build up his ballistic-missile force because he can be assured that nothing will interfere with such missiles in reaching their targets.

RK

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Rich Karlgaard

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Mr. Putin’s other major concern would be that such a deployment by the U.S. obviously puts us in a position to decide who else in the world gets to launch ballistic missiles, including space-launch vehicles. Even when Britain ruled the waves in the 19th century after its victory over Napoleon, the Royal Navy did not have the capability to sail back and forth in front of all the world’s ports and decide who did and did not get to use the seas. Yet a spacebased kinetic-intercept system would give us a capacity akin to that—the ability to limit others’ access to space. And Russian leaders would know that we could maintain the ability to launch enough small satellites in relatively short order to cover northern latitudes as well, if we were to withdraw from the treaty.

Every two-bit rogue is moving sharply to build up his ballistic-missile force because he can be assured that nothing will interfere with such missiles in reaching their targets.