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Accidental Launch 2NC --- Link Extension



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Accidental Launch 2NC --- Link Extension




Wep causes arms race with china and mis calc


Hui 05 (Zhang Hui is a research associate at the Project on Managing the Atom of the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. His research includes nuclear arms control verification techniques, the control of fissile material, nuclear terrorism, nuclear safeguards, nonproliferation and space. An extended version of this paper was produced for the, Space Weaponization And Space Security: A Chinese Perspective, www.wsichina.org/attach/CS2_3.pdf)


[Due to the threatening nature of space weapons, it is reasonable to assume that China and others would attempt to block their deployment and use by political and, if necessary, military means.11 Many Chinese officials and scholars believe that China should take every possible step to maintain the effectiveness of its nuclear deterrent. This includes negating the threats from missile defense and space weaponization plans.12 In responding to any U.S. move toward deployment space weapons, the first and best option for China is to pursue an arms control agreement to prevent not just the United States but any nation from doing so -- as it is advocating presently. However, if this effort fails and if what China perceives as its legitimate security concerns are ignored, it would very likely develop responses to counter and neutralize such a threat.

Despite the enormous cost of space-based weapon systems, they are vulnerable to a number of low-cost and relatively low-technology ASAT attacks including the use of ground-launched small kinetic-kill vehicles, pellet clouds or space mines. It is reasonable to believe that China and others could resort to these ASAT weapons to counter any U.S. space-based weapons.13 This, however, would lead to an arms race in space.

To protect against the potential loss of its deterrent capability, China could potentially resort to enhancing its nuclear forces. Such a move could, in turn, encourage India and then Pakistan to follow suit. Furthermore, Russia has threatened to respond to any country's deployment of space weapons.14 Moreover, constructing additional weapons would produce a need for more plutonium and highly enriched uranium to fuel those weapons. This impacts China's participation in the fissile material cut-off treaty (FMCT).15 Eventually, failure to proceed with the nuclear disarmament process, to which the nuclear weapon states committed themselves under the Non-Proliferation Treaty, would damage the entire nuclear nonproliferation regime itself, which is already at the breaking point. As Hu Xiaodi, China's ambassador for disarmament affairs, asked, "With lethal weapons flying overhead in orbit and disrupting global strategic stability, why should people eliminate weapons of mass destruction or missiles on the ground? This cannot but do harm to global peace, security and stability, and hence be detrimental to the fundamental interests of all States."16 ]



US space mill would cause international arms race and possible miscalc due to valuerablilites as well as offensive incentive


Theresa Hitchens 2002(CDI Vice President, Weapons in Space: Silver Bullet or Russian Roulette? The Policy Implications of U.S. Pursuit of Space-Based Weapons)
[It is inconceivable that either Russia or China would allow the United States to become the sole nation with space-based weapons. "Once a nation embarks down the road to gain a huge asymmetric advantage, the natural tendency of others is to close that gap. An arms race tends to develop an inertia of its own," writes Air Force Lt. Col. Bruce M. DeBlois, in a 1998 article in Airpower Journal.29

Chinese moves to put weapons in space would trigger regional rival India to consider the same, in turn, spurring Pakistan to strive for parity with India. Even U.S. allies in Europe might feel pressure to "keep up with the Joneses." It is quite easy to imagine the course of a new arms race in space that would be nearly as destabilizing as the atomic weapons race proved to be.



Such a strategic-level space race could have negative consequences for U.S. security in the long run that would outweigh the obvious (and tremendous) short-term advantage of being the first with space-based weapons. There would be direct economic costs to sustaining orbital weapon systems and keeping ahead of opponents intent on matching U.S. space-weapon capabilities — raising the proverbial question of whether we would be starting a game we might not be able to win. (It should be remembered that the attacker will always have an advantage in space warfare, in that space assets are inherently static, moving in predictable orbits. Space weapons, just like satellites, have inherent vulnerabilities.) Again, the price tag of space weapons systems would not be trivial — with maintenance costs a key issue. For example, it now costs commercial firms between $300 million and $350 million to replace a single satellite that has a lifespan of about 15 years, according to Ed Cornet, vice president of Booz Allen and Hamilton consulting firm.30 ]
Space weaponization puts nukes on high alert, causes accidental launch, theft, nuclear terrorism, and miscalc

Lewis 4 – Jeffrey Lewis, postdoctoral fellow in the Advanced Methods of Cooperative Security Program at the Center for International and Security Studies at the University of Maryland School of Public Policy, July 2004, “What if Space Were Weaponized?” Center for Defense Information, http://www.cdi.org/PDFs/scenarios.pdf
While China currently maintains its forces on a “no alert” status, Beijing has indicated considerable concern about how a U.S. spacebased missile defense system might undercut its nuclear deterrent. The Chinese ambassador to the Conference on Disarmament warned that the deployment of space weapons would “jeopardize the global strategic balance and stability” and “trigger off … another round of arms race.”38 China currently does not appear to keep nuclear warheads mated to its ballistic missiles, nor aboard its single ballistic missile submarine (which stays in port). All Chinese nuclear weapons appear to be under lock and key in storage facilities that are physically separate from their launch pads. The deployment of space weapons could create strong incentives to reverse this restraint, and increase the alert rates of Chinese forces.39 Raising the alert rates of Russian and Chinese nuclear forces would undermine U.S. security on a day-to-day basis, because forces on alert are inherently more vulnerable to the inherent risks of accident or unauthorized use. Accidents happen, including accidents with U.S. nuclear weapons. In some cases, the warheads were lost – the United States lost at least two nuclear weapons during aircraft crashes in 1958 off the coast of Savannah, Georgia, and in 1966 off the coast of Spain.40 In other cases, warheads have been recovered: In 1996, an Energy Department tractor trailer overturned in a Nebraska blizzard carrying “classified cargo” – later confirmed to be several nuclear warheads. Fortunately, the weapons were recovered undamaged after several hours.41 These kinds of accidents are more likely to happen when forces are kept on alert and moved around. There is also the risk that nuclear warheads might be stolen by terrorists or sold by military units. Although Russian soldiers are now paid regularly, obviating concerns that they might sell nuclear weapons on the black market, both Russia and China have indigenous terrorist groups with ties to al Qaeda. These groups would have strong incentives to attempt to steal one or more nuclear weapons – and mobile missiles patrolling in remote areas, for example, might be an inviting target. Forces on high rates of alert are also vulnerable to the nightmare scenario of an unauthorized launch by a field commander. Although the United States has instituted extensive human reliability programs to ensure that U.S. military personnel are psychologically stable, there is little evidence of comparable programs in Russia or China. Even in a perfect program, mistakes are made. As one U.S. officer recalled: “I used to worry about Gen. [Thomas] Power. I used to worry that Gen. Power was not stable. I used to worry about the fact that he had control over so many weapons and weapon systems and could, under certain conditions, launch the force. Back in the days before we had real positive control, [Stratgeic Air Command] had the power to do a lot of things, and it was in his hands, and he knew it.”42 These problems are a feature of what some call the “always/never” dilemma: “nuclear weapons must always detonate when those authorized direct and never detonate when those authorized do not.” These are cross purposes – finding the right balance between the two requires making intelligent judgments about which risks one chooses to run. Given the enormous destructive power of nuclear weapons and important economic and political interests that the United States shares with both Russia and China, all sides should be more interested in the “never” part of the equation. Yet space weapons, by threatening the nuclear forces of both countries, could well create incentives for Russia and China to do the opposite.




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