America cannot yet counter Russia's hypersonic weapons

According to Sputnik, the Real Clear Defense website quoted the opinions of experts Bishop Garrison and Preston Lann from the US Joseph Rainey Center for Public Policy, saying that so far, the US still does not have a missile defense system capable of repelling Russia's hypersonic weapons.

Russia's new Kinzhal hypersonic missile system. Photo: Sputnik/VNA

According to experts, the Pentagon focuses on developing offensive weapons, while not paying enough attention to defensive capabilities.

In their view, the US hypersonic weapons program “suffers from change,” with only 6% of the total defense budget devoted to it. This is because offensive systems are cheaper and less complex to develop.

"Although offensive weapons are less expensive, their presence does not replace the need for strong defenses, and at the present time the United States does not have that capability," the experts' article said.

According to experts, the termination of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty puts the US in a rather dangerous situation, because opponents can now "strike first or launch a preemptive strike on nuclear weapons delivery systems."

Rapidly changing geopolitical realities highlight the risks posed by the United States’ lack of a viable defense against hypersonic weapons. Reallocating Pentagon funding could help address the hypersonic defense problem.

But it is important that the US government closely monitor spending from the defense budget, because the US military is "famous for throwing billions of dollars at missile defense systems without corresponding returns."

The US has been working hard to develop hypersonic missiles recently. For example, in 2018, the US military began developing the "air-to-ground" class ARRW missile.

At the same time, the Americans are developing a long-range HCSW hypersonic missile for the Air Force. In total, the ARRW and HCSW projects are expected to cost the US budget nearly 1.5 billion USD./.