Back to news

August 8, 2018 | International, C4ISR

In contemporary warfare, cyber trumps nukes

By: Shalom Lipner

Nuclear proliferation appears to weigh heavily on U.S. President Donald Trump's mind. Standing next to his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, in Helsinki last month, Trump said ominously that it's “probably the most important thing that we can be working on.” Since then, Trump has proposed dramatically to negotiate denuclearization with Iran — after threatening the country with “consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before” — and even floated the idea of a second meeting with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un with the goal of dismantling Pyongyang's nuclear arsenal.

For someone whose projection of power derives so intensely from online networks, Trump is surprisingly old-fashioned.

During the 1964 presidential campaign, President Lyndon Johnson aired a spot deemed so controversial than it never ran a second time. As an innocent, young girl picked petals off a daisy in the park, her voice was drowned out slowly by a launch countdown. Then, narrating against the backdrop of a mushroom cloud, Johnson proclaimed: “We must either love each other, or we must die.” His Republican opponent, Barry Goldwater — the implicit warmonger who was not even mentioned by name — lost by an overwhelming margin.

But the more contemporary battlefield of cyberspace merited not one single mention in Trump's remarks alongside Putin in Finland. Unless you count the infamous Democratic National Committee server, that is, which he referenced nine times. While Trump obsesses about politics, the U.S. is exposed to great danger.

Drawing a direct comparison to 9/11, Dan Coats, the director of national intelligence, has warned that America's “digital infrastructure ... is literally under attack.” He fingered Russia as the “most aggressive foreign actor” and awarded dishonorable mentions to China, Iran and North Korea.

Trump then chose to accept Putin's denials of Russian interference over the assessment of his intelligence chiefs. His subsequent reversal was unpersuasive.

Full Article: https://www.fifthdomain.com/opinion/2018/08/06/in-contemporary-warfare-cyber-trumps-nukes/

On the same subject

  • Trilateral joint venture to manage GCAP warplane work from London

    December 14, 2024 | International, Aerospace

    Trilateral joint venture to manage GCAP warplane work from London

    Basing the firm in the UK is meant to ensure “maximum alignment" with the UK-based government organization driving the 6th-gen fighter development.

  • Forecast: Western Maritime Helicopter Deliveries/Retirements 2020-2029

    July 6, 2020 | International, Aerospace, Naval

    Forecast: Western Maritime Helicopter Deliveries/Retirements 2020-2029

    July 06, 2020 Aviation Week Network forecasts that over the next ten years, 677 new, Western-designed helicopters performing maritime missions will be built, 114 will be re-engined/remanufactured, and 355 will be retired. Aviation Week defines this mission market as helicopters performing search and rescue (SAR) over bodies of water without special equipment, general-purpose helicopters based primarily on ships performing specifically maritime missions, or helicopters carrying specialized technology for anti-surface and anti-submarine warfare (ASW) missions and over-water airborne early warning (AEW) missions. The V-22 is included in the forecast due to the CMV-22B's role performing the traditional helicopter mission of vertical replenishment. The largest procurement of maritime helicopters this decade will be the U.S. Coast Guard's upgrade of its fleet of 95 Airbus MH-65Ds (based on the H155) to the MH-65E standard. The largest new-build procurement of maritime helicopters will be NH Industries NFH90s going to several European countries. While the NH90 still has a customer in Qatar, it has definitively failed to gain wider traction in the Middle East as it struggled to compete with Leonardo and Sikorsky offerings. Very close behind the NH90 is the ubiquitous Sikorsky S-70/H-60, with new-build helicopters in the next 10 years. The two largest procurements of maritime helicopters in the world both belong to the Indian Navy, which has a 123-aircraft Naval Multi-Role Helicopter (NMRH) requirement for anti-submarine warfare helicopters and a 111-aircraft Naval Utility Helicopters (NUH) requirement. Leonardo's continued blacklisting by India has removed its ability to compete for 2/3rd of the worlds yet -to-be-decided maritime helicopters but it remains a strong competitor for much of the remaining helicopters in open competitions and requirements. For more information about the 2020 Forecast and other Aviation Week data products, please see: http://pages.aviationweek.com/Forecasts  https://aviationweek.com/special-topics/vertical-lift/forecast-western-maritime-helicopter-deliveriesretirements-2020-2029

  • Antitrust regulators sue to block Lockheed's Aerojet acquisition

    January 26, 2022 | International, Aerospace

    Antitrust regulators sue to block Lockheed's Aerojet acquisition

    The U.S. Federal Trade Commission says Lockheed Martin's planned $4.4 billion acquisition of Aerojet Rocketdyne will raise antitrust concerns, the companies said Tuesday.

All news