US military cancels test of intercontinental ballistic missile to lower nuclear tensions with Russia
BREAKING: US Military cancels test of its Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile to lower nuclear tensions with Russia
The U.S. has canceled its test of the Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile after having delayed the test earlier this monthAn Air Force spokesperson said the decision to cancel the test comes in a bid to lower nuclear tensions with Russia during the war in UkraineRussian President Vladimir Putin said in February that his nation’s nuclear forces should be put on high alert, raising fears of a potential nuclear war When the U.S. first delayed the missile test officials said it was important to ‘bear in mind the risk of miscalculation and take steps to reduce those risks’The next Minuteman III test is scheduled to take place later this year
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The U.S. Military has canceled a previously scheduled test of its intercontinental ballistic missile in a bid to lower nuclear tensions with Russia during the war in Ukraine.
The Air Force confirmed the cancellation of its Minuteman III test after Moscow announced earlier on Friday that it would militarily strengthen its Western borders with Europe.
The U.S. had previously delayed the ICBM test on March 2 when Russia said it was putting its nuclear forces on high alert.
Washington said at the time that it was important both nations ‘bear in mind the risk of miscalculation and take steps to reduce those risks.’ However, officials said the intent was only to delay the test ‘a little bit,’ not cancel it.
Air Force spokesperson Ann Stefanek said Friday the decision to cancel the test of the LGM-30G Minuteman III missile was due to the same reasons as when it had been first delayed, but noted: ‘The Air Force is confident in the readiness of the strategic forces of the United States.’
The next Minuteman III test is scheduled to take place later this year.
The nuclear-capable missile is a key part of the U.S. Military’s strategic arsenal and has a range of 6,000-plus miles and can travel at a speed of approximately 15,000 miles per hour.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said in February that his nation’s nuclear forces should be put on high alert, raising fears that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine could lead to nuclear war.
The U.S. military has canceled a previously scheduled test of its intercontinental ballistic missile in a bid to lower nuclear tensions with Russia during the war in Ukraine. The Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile is pictured during a test launch in October 2019
The Air Force confirmed the cancellation of its Minuteman III test after Russia announced earlier on Friday it would military strengthen its western borders with Europe. Russian President Vladimir Putin is pictured attending a meeting with the Security Council on Friday
In response, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin made the decision to cancel the ballistic missile test that was scheduled for early March ‘to demonstrate we are a responsible nuclear power.’
Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby claimed the move was a show of ‘restraint’ amid warnings that Putin would be deploying vacuum bombs and cluster munitions across the border.
‘This is not a step backward in our readiness, nor does it imply that we will necessarily cancel other routine activities to ensure a credible nuclear capability,’ Kirby assured the nation during a press conference on March 2.
‘We did not take this decision lightly, but instead to demonstrate that we are a responsible nuclear power.’
He added: ‘We remain confident in our strategic posture.’
Air Force spokesperson Ann Stefanek (not pictured) said Friday the decision to cancel the test of the LGM-30G Minuteman III missile was due to the same reasons as when it had been first delayed in early March. Air Force marshals are pictured at a base in Romania in February 2022
The U.S. had previously delayed the ballistic missile test on March 2 when Russia said it was putting its nuclear forces on high alert amid the war in Ukraine. Ukrainian soldiers are pictured approaching a trench that had been used by Russian soldiers as they retake an area on the outskirts of Kyiv on Friday
Despite Russia’s threats, U.S. officials have said they have seen no reason, so far, to change Washington’s nuclear alert levels.
However, experts warn that altering the test schedule for America’s ICBM force could be controversial.
The missiles are dispersed in hardened underground silos operated by launch crews.
U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe, the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, expressed disappointment in March at the delay of a test he said was critical to ensure America’s nuclear deterrent remains effective.
Jeffrey Lewis, a missile researcher at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies (CNS), played down the impact of the cancelation.
‘There’s a value to doing the tests but I don’t think missing one test in the grand scheme of things is a really big deal,’ said Lewis, adding the Minuteman III was extremely reliable.
Russia and the U.S. have by far the biggest arsenals of nuclear warheads after the Cold War that divided the world for much of the 20th century, pitting the West against the Soviet Union and its allies.
The announcement of the canceled missile test comes as war continues to rage in Ukraine.
The nation recaptured more territory around Kyiv from Russian soldiers who left shattered villages and their own abandoned tanks as they moved away from the capital, while a disputed cross-border strike in Russia complicated peace talks on Friday.
In the hamlet of Dmytrivka to the west of the capital, smoke was still rising from the wrecks of tanks and the bodies of at least eight Russian soldiers lay in the streets, Reuters correspondents saw.
Ukrainian forces went on to take back Bucha, its mayor said on Friday in a video that appeared to be filmed outside the town hall.
The advances followed several days of Ukrainian gains around Kyiv and in the north.
In southwest Ukraine, anti-air defenses thwarted an attempted attack on critical infrastructure in the Black Sea port of Odesa, the Ukrainian military said.
Reuters could not immediately verify the account.
Odesa’s governor, Maksym Marchenko, said three missiles had hit a residential district, causing casualties.
A man walks past a burnt armored personnel carrier near buildings destroyed in the course of Ukraine-Russia conflict in the southern port city of Mariupol, Ukraine April 1
He said the missiles were fired from an Iskander missile system in Crimea, the southern Ukrainian peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014. Russia denies targeting civilians.
‘President Vladimir Putin sent troops on February 24 for what he calls a ‘special operation’ to demilitarize Ukraine.
The West calls it an unprovoked war of aggression that has killed thousands and uprooted a quarter of Ukraine’s population.
Moscow said Ukrainian helicopters struck a fuel depot in the Russian border city of Belgorod, a logistics hub for its war effort, causing a huge fire. Ukraine denied responsibility for the incident, the first of its kind in the five-week-old war.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the incident could jeopardize Ukrainian-Russian peace talks, which resumed on Friday by video link. Russia will strengthen its western borders so it won’t ‘cross anyone’s mind to attack,’ Peskov said later.
Service members of pro-Russian troops sit atop of an armored vehicle, which moves along a street in the course of Ukraine-Russia conflict in the southern port city of Mariupol, Ukraine April 1
A view shows the building of a theatre destroyed in the course of Ukraine-Russia conflict in the southern port city of Mariupol, Ukraine April 1
Mwantime, it was revealed Thursday night that Russia’s war effort is grinding to a halt because much of the military hardware they need is made in Ukraine.
Kremlin forces have run out of vital weapons and cannot now replenish their stocks, U.K. defense sources confirmed to The Daily Mail.
The revelations came as President Volodymyr Zelensky’s forces drove Russia out of dozens of towns around Kyiv and the north in one of the most extraordinary days since the start of the invasion.
More than 30 settlements were reclaimed with Putin’s forces retreating up to 25 miles in places. But officials urged caution, saying the movement is part of Russia’s ‘tactics’ to encircle Ukrainian troops in Donbas and split the country in two.
Nato secretary general Jens Stoltenberg said: ‘Russian units are not withdrawing but repositioning.’
Russia’s war effort is grinding to a halt because much of the military hardware they need is made in Ukraine, it emerged as defense sources said the Kremlin could not replenish its stocks
The Daily Mail can reveal that Ukraine had previously supplied Russia with cruise missiles, helicopter engine parts and fighter jet components. It also produced the fire control systems used by Russian tanks (one seen here at the bottom of a river)
Ukraine had previously supplied Russia with cruise missiles, helicopter engine parts and fighter jet components. It also produced the fire control systems used by Russian tanks.
Now, when these systems fail, they cannot be replaced as Russia is unable to source these items or alternatives from other countries due to international sanctions.
Since the conflict began in late February, Russia has lost an estimated 143 planes, 131 helicopters, 625 tanks and 316 artillery pieces.
Russia has also fired at least 1,100 missiles, raising questions about how long it can maintain such an expenditure rate.
