[LINK] Hypersonic weapons

[Stephen Loosley]

Aukus pact extended to development of hypersonic weapons

Britain, US and Australia to cooperate on high-speed missiles to counter Russia and China

By Dan Sabbagh, Wed 6 Apr 2022   (Note: the U.S. front page New York Times version is also below)

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2022/apr/05/aukus-pact-extended-to-development-of-hypersonic-weapons


Britain will work with the US and Australia in developing nuclear-capable hypersonic weapons, after Russia used the deadly high-speed missiles in airstrikes last month during the war in Ukraine.

The military agreement – endorsed by Joe Biden, Boris Johnson and the Australian prime minister, Scott Morrison – is a new element in the Aukus pact, originally announced last autumn to provide nuclear-powered submarines to Canberra.

A statement from all three leaders announced a further expansion of the agreement, described as “new trilateral cooperation on hypersonics and counter-hypersonic” weapons, part of a growing militarisation after the Russian invasion.

China has tested its own version of the weapons, and the Aukus leaders are keen to be seen to be presenting a united front against Beijing and Moscow. “Our ability to determine their use and to counter their use will be important part of maintaining stability right across the world,” a British official said.

The US quietly tested its own hypersonic missile last month, although it kept details secret for a fortnight for fear of antagonising Russia, and it is already collaborating with Australia. The agreement means Britain is now engaged for the first time.

Stephen Lovegrove, the UK’s national security adviser, said the latest announcement demonstrated the development of Aukus. “In light of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, it’s more important now than ever that allies work together to defend democracy, international law and freedom around the world,” he added.

Hypersonic missiles – whether nuclear or not – travel at at least five times the speed of sound, faster than conventional cruise missiles. They are designed to be manoeuvrable, allowing them, in theory, to evade conventional missile defences.

However, it is unclear if they have any genuine military utility, and critics say their development is contributing to a deepening international rearmament in response to the Ukraine crisis.

Biden said last month that Russia had used its Kinzhal hypersonic missile against Ukrainian targets, describing it as “a consequential weapon” that was “almost impossible to stop”. Russia said it had used them twice, against targets near Mykolaiv and elsewhere in the west of Ukraine.

Vladimir Putin has previously praised the Kinzhal and weapons like it, saying four years ago that “its speed makes it invulnerable” and that it was “quite understandable why the leading armies of the world seek to possess such an ideal weapon”.

But others have voiced scepticism. The US defence secretary, Lloyd Austin, said he would “not see it as a gamechanger”, and other experts see them simply as modified versions of Russian Iskander ballistic missiles, which are launched from a plane against a target.

China has been testing hypersonic weapons using a different technology, known as the hypersonic glide vehicle, in which the missiles are initially launched into space and then attached to dedicated aerodynamic craft designed to bring them down to their targets on Earth.

The UK, US and Australia intend to work on researching both types of hypersonic technology – missiles and glide vehicles – and examine ways of countering the threat they may pose. “We need to understand how the overall targeting system of our adversaries might work,” a British official said.

Pentagon officials have assessed that hypersonic weapons will add $21.5bn (£16.4bn) to the navy’s budget and $7bn to the army’s in coming years, although the estimates are tentative as the technology emerges. British sources, however, said the UK had not committed to buying any hypersonic weapons, and is only engaged in a research and development phase before deciding how to proceed.

Kate Hudson, the general secretary of the pressure group CND, said she believed the extension of the Aukus pact would “further escalate global tensions at a time when the threat of nuclear war is at its highest in decades”, and it risked accelerating an arms race with China in the Asia-Pacific.

“Not to mention the fact that military budgets are already escalating – what will the opportunity cost be for embarking on a whole new class of weaponry?” Hudson added.

The joint progress report will be seen as politically helpful to Morrison, whose Coalition government in Canberra is trailing Labor in the polls as it prepares for a federal election expected on 14 or 21 May.

Morrison, who is expected to formally trigger the election campaign within days, is seeking to make national security one of his key themes, arguing that the world is facing “uncertain times” and it is not a moment for “weakness”.


And, here’s a U.S. front page New York Times version of this story ..

By Julian E. Barnes April 5, 2022 https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/04/05/world/ukraine-russia-war#after-russian-advances-us-britain-and-australia-expand-partnership-to-develop-hypersonic-missiles

After Russian advances, the U.S., Britain and Australia expand a partnership to develop hypersonic missiles.

The United States, Australia and Britain announced on Tuesday that they were bolstering their cooperation on developing new hypersonic weapons, an expansion of an agreement reached last year to build new nuclear-powered submarines.

Hypersonic weapons, which maneuver at several times the speed of sound, can potentially evade missile defense systems and quickly strike a target even if it is on the other side of the world.

The announcement is an attempt to jump-start the work of the United States and two key allies at a time when Russia and China have made important advances in developing and fielding hypersonic weapons.

Russia and China have invested heavily in hypersonic technology, and by some measures have moved ahead of the United States and its allies. Last August, China tested a hypersonic missile that circled the globe twice before hitting its target.

Russia announced in 2019 that it had deployed a hypersonic missile, and it has used the technology in an attack on a weapons depot in the war in Ukraine. Though it is clear Russia has fielded the weapons, it remains to be seen what tactical advantages superfast missiles have given Russian forces in Ukraine.

Hypersonic speed is defined as faster than Mach 5, or 3,806 miles per hour, far beyond the speed of sound, which is about 761 miles per hour.

The Pentagon and the Air Force have worked on hypersonics for some 20 years, including a push that began in the first decade of this century. In recent years, as China and Russia have increased their work on hypersonics, so too has the Pentagon, requesting $3.8 billion for researching the technology in the current fiscal year.

The announcement on Tuesday by the three countries was short on specifics, saying only that the “partners will work together to accelerate development of advanced hypersonic and counter-hypersonic capabilities.”

The earlier announcement said the three countries would cooperate to develop nuclear submarines, and it was framed as an effort to counter China’s growing power in the Pacific and elsewhere. The announcement on Tuesday said the importance of the partnership had “only grown in response to Russia’s unprovoked, unjustified and unlawful invasion of Ukraine.”

In addition to working on nuclear reactors and hypersonic weapons, the three countries are also accelerating investments and experiments in quantum computing, artificial intelligence, cybercapabilities, electronic warfare and other technologies.

According to the announcement, the additional areas of research also include smart robots meant to enhance undersea surveillance. The autonomous underwater vehicles, it said, “will be a significant force multiplier for our maritime forces.” Initial sea trials are planned for 2023.

Expanding work in those technologies — and protecting American know-how against espionage attempts — has been a priority of the Biden administration. U.S. officials believe that without a more concentrated effort, the United States could fall behind China in technologies that will be important to the economy as well as to military strength.

At a hearing before the House Armed Services Committee on Tuesday, Republicans suggested that China and Russia were ahead of the United States in developing hypersonics. Lloyd J. Austin III, the secretary of defense, initially avoided a direct response. But when Representative Matt Gaetz, Republican of Florida, tried to link delays in fielding hypersonic weapons with a purported embrace of socialism by the Pentagon, Mr. Austin shot back.

He denied that the Pentagon embraced socialism and asked: “What do you mean we are behind in hypersonics?”

At another point in the hearing, Mr. Austin said the work with Australia and Britain on hypersonics, artificial intelligence and other technology was “coming along really, really well.” The priority of developing hypersonic weapons — and defenses against them — was clear, he added.

“I have engaged industry and asked them to make sure that they’re leaning into this issue of hypersonic development,” Mr. Austin said. “Most importantly, I’ve asked them to make sure that they’re working with us on how we’re going to defend ourselves with respect to hypersonics.”

William Roper, a former senior Air Force official, said the United States historically had not invested enough in hypersonics.

“Hypersonics bring unique battlefield advantages, and China’s progress has been impressive,” he said. “Leveraging the advantage we enjoy in close allies and partners is a uniquely American way to close the gap. But more broadly, the U.S. must avoid responding to every Chinese military advancement symmetrically — that is a cost-imposing path we can ill afford.”

The broader nuclear-powered submarines deal infuriated France because it had been negotiated in secret and scuttled a large submarine contract that Paris had signed with Australia.

Britain is included in the new plan because the compact nuclear reactors for the Australian submarines will probably use the unusual designs of American and British submarines, which are powered by bomb-grade, highly enriched uranium. The United States has not shared the potent technology with other major allies because, if diverted, it could fuel nuclear arms.

The announcement said the three partner nations have engaged proactively with the International Atomic Energy Agency on the deal’s nonproliferation aspects. Rafael Mariano Grossi, the agency’s director general, told its board of governors on March 7 that Australia, Britain and the United States “are committed to ensuring the highest nonproliferation and safeguards standards are met.”

William J. Broad contributed reporting.