Russia is an acute threat to the United States and its allies.
This was stated by the head of the Pentagon, Lloyd Austin, during the presentation of the new US defense strategy.
He listed the risks posed by Russia: nuclear threats, long-range cruise missile threats, cyber and information operations, counterspace threats, chemical and biological weapons, submarine warfare, and extensive gray zone campaigns aimed, in particular, against democracies.
Austin also called China the most comprehensive challenge to US security. According to him, China “the only country with both the intent to reshape the international order, and, increasingly, the economic, diplomatic, military, and technological power to do so.”
"Unlike China, Russia cannot systematically challenge the United States in the long term. But Russian aggression really poses a direct and sharp threat to our interests and values," added the head of the Pentagon.
The document also mentions the achievements of China and Russia in the development of hypersonic missiles, which are more difficult for the United States to detect. In addition, Beijing and Moscow are improving their ability to shoot down satellites or push them out of orbit.
To counter these threats, the U.S. will build a ring of low-orbit satellites—this will speed up the detection of hypersonic launches and provide a backup—if one U.S. satellite is hit, the rest will still be operational.
- Earlier, the representative of the Pentagon, Brigadier General Pat Ryder, said that the USA is fully prepared for any nuclear scenarios implemented by Russia, but so far they do not see any changes in the nuclear positions of the Russian Federation. The White House continues to closely monitor the situation.