President Obama, however, ritually included the word "smarter" in his Sept. 17, 2009, statement. "To put it simply," he said, "our new missile defense architecture in Europe will provide stronger, smarter and swifter defenses of American forces and America's allies. It is more comprehensive than the previous program; it deploys capabilities that are proven and cost-effective; and it sustains and builds upon our commitment to protect the U.S. homeland against long-range ballistic missile threats; and it ensures and enhances the protection of all our NATO allies."
Obama began with a narrow truth: Deploying short- and mid-range ABM systems to defend friendly nations against Iranian ballistic missile attack is good idea. In the Sept. 11, 2009, Wall Street Journal, Iraqi commentator Omar Fadhil al-Nidawi and I suggested Iraq acquire Patriot PAC-3 short-range ABMs to provide a basic defense against Iranian missiles.
Iraqis know the threat. During their long conflict in the 1980s, Iraq and Iran fought a "War of the Cities" with theater ballistic missiles. Saddam fired SCUDs at Israel and Saudi Arabia. America could deploy a belt of Patriot batteries and Navy Standard-3 ABMs along the Persian Gulf littoral and in Turkey.
Obama says he will deploy Patriot PAC-3s and Navy Standard-3s in Europe.
Fine. But to call substituting short- and mid-range ABMs for the GBIs "smarter" and more comprehensive is balderdash, and balderdash that ultimately increases risks to Europe and the U.S., while undermining once-strong political relationships with nascent democracies (like Poland) in Eastern Europe.
Europe needs all of these systems, in concert, for a layered, full-spectrum defense of short-, mid- and long-range ABMs that is harder for a volley of rogue-nation ballistic missiles to penetrate.
Full-spectrum missile defense is part of a "unified diplomatic program" to create a sphere of security, first for the U.S. and NATO allies. But over time its shield can expand to protect other nations favoring peaceful relations, mutual cooperation and trade. Obama has hobbled that grand initiative in favor of dubious promises from the Kremlin.