1、Congressional Research Service The Library of CongressCRS Report for CongressReceived through the CRS Web97-862 FUpdated May 29, 1998National Missile Defense: Status of the DebateStephen DaggettSpecialist in National DefenseandRobert D. ShueySpecialist in U.S. Foreign Policy & National DefenseForeig
2、n Affairs and National Defense DivisionSummaryIn recent years, the debate over National Missile Defense (NMD) has focused onhow best, and how quickly, to develop and deploy a system to protect the United Statesagainst a limited ballistic missile threat either an accidental or unauthorized launchfrom
3、 Russia or China or a deliberate attack from a rogue state. The ClintonAdministration is pursuing what it calls a 3 plus 3 strategy the goal is to developNMD technology over the three years through 2000 sufficiently to allow a system to bedeployed three years later, by 2003, if a decision is made to
4、 do so. If a decision todeploy is deferred, development would continue. Many missile defense advocates inCongress, however, want to set a date for deploying a nationwide defense. Key issuesin the debate include how quickly rogue nations might acquire long-range missiles,whether advances in technolog