Will America Hand Space Dominance to China?

by Gordon G. Chang • November 2, 2020 at 5:00 am

Some believe the US space program should emphasize climate change research. If there is no overall increase in space spending, there will be less money for, among other things, defending American assets in space.
Brandon Weichert of The Weichert Report said in an interview with Gatestone that there might be a move to "staff the Space Force with people inimical to its mission."
America is... in many respects behind Russia and China in the ability to fight "over great distances at tremendous speeds, " as Space Force's General John Raymond said in September.
Moreover, there are other policy proposals that would degrade America's ability to defend itself.... Unfortunately, there are many who still believe America can come to agreement with China.
In space, almost everything has a dual purpose. Fisher, for instance, reports that China will put a laser on its upcoming space station for the announced purpose of eliminating space junk. Of course, such a laser is also capable of killing American satellites.
Other dual use items are Russia's co-orbital "Space Stalkers." In peacetime, they can be used to repair satellites. In wartime, Weichert says, "they can physically push U.S. satellites out of their orbits." That would render America's forces, and America itself, "deaf, dumb, and blind on land, at sea, in the air, and within cyberspace."
In any event, neither Russia nor China honors agreements, especially arms control treaties.

This year, through the end of September, China launched 29 satellites, more than any other nation. Pictured: A Long March 3B rocket, carrying the Beidou-3GEO3 satellite, lifts off from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in China's Sichuan province on June 23, 2020. (Photo by STR/AFP via Getty Images)

China will be launching satellites almost every other week starting next March. In one instance the gap in next year's frenetic schedule of launches will be only five days.

This year, through the end of September, China launched 29 satellites, more than any other nation. The U.S. was a close second with 27.

Beijing aims to widen its lead. Most observers worry that the Chinese regime is determined to get to the moon before U.S. astronauts return there, but another troublesome development is that China will quickly be filling up orbits with satellites.

With a presidential candidate who has not been all that communicative, Americans may want to think more about space policy. In short, there are growing concerns that a new administration will, with the best of intentions but an utter lack of common sense, hand space leadership to the Chinese.

Continue Reading Article

Iran's Mullahs are in Turmoil Thanks to America's Current Policy

by Majid Rafizadeh • November 2, 2020 at 4:00 am

Iran's currency, the rial, lost more than half its value so far just in 2020.
Iran's regime is currently running a $200 million budget deficit per week and it is estimated that if the pressure on Tehran continues, the deficit will hit roughly $10 billion by March 2021. This deficit will, in return, increase inflation and devalue the currency even further.
Iran's militia groups are subsequently receiving less funding to pursue their terror activities. This shortfall may be why, for the first time in more than three decades, Hezbollah's leader, Hassan Nasrallah, made a public statement asking people to donate money to his group.
Iran's ruling mullahs desire to maintain the JCPOA. It not only provided their regime with many benefits including economic relief and global legitimacy; at the same time, it ignored Tehran's military adventurism in the region, its ballistic missile program and its support for terror groups across the Middle East. Most importantly, the JCPOA also paved the way for Tehran ultimately to become a nuclear state.
The "maximum pressure" policy against Iran's ruling mullahs is working and must absolutely continue.

The Iranian regime is in turmoil thanks to the "maximum pressure" policy implemented by US President Donald J. Trump against the ruling mullahs. Iran's currency, the rial, lost more than half its value so far just in 2020. Pictured: A currency exchange shop at the Grand Bazaar in Tehran, Iran on February 12, 2020. (Photo by Atta Kenare/AFP via Getty Images)

The Iranian regime is in turmoil thanks to the "maximum pressure" policy implemented by US President Donald J. Trump against the ruling mullahs.

Iran's currency, the rial, lost more than half its value so far just in 2020. That decline makes it one of the most worthless national currencies in the world. As of October 25, the rial traded on unofficial markets at 300,500 to the US dollar. The rate has pushed the Iranian authorities to agree on removing four zeros from its currency, which has gone into a virtual free-fall. Two years ago, one US dollar was worth nearly 30,000 rials.

The plummeting currency has also increased the demand for US dollars and gold. Even Iran's state-run Mardom Salari Daily warned:

Continue Reading Article