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U.S. blows up last missile silo for Cold War treaty
The U.S. military on Friday blew up a Minuteman III missile silo, marking the last such silo destruction under a Cold War-era arms reduction treaty between the United States and the former Soviet Union. A dark cloud of dust and smoke arose from under ground after the military set off 800 pounds (363 kg) of explosives, forever closing the door on a silo that once housed a guided intercontinental missile equipped with nuclear warheads, ready to be launched at a moment`s notice.
The U.S. military on Friday blew up a Minuteman III missile silo, marking the last such silo destruction under a Cold War-era arms reduction treaty between the United States and the former Soviet Union. A dark cloud of dust and smoke arose from under ground after the military set off 800 pounds (363 kg) of explosives, forever closing the door on a silo that once housed a guided intercontinental missile equipped with nuclear warheads, ready to be launched at a moment’s notice.
Military officials attending the event expressed mixed emotions, including sadness for the end of an era in which the missile silos were a key component of U.S. defense, but also approval of the move to disarmament.
"For 36 years we’ve been on alert 24-7 to protect us from any foreign country," said missile facility technician Sgt. Steve Marback who witnessed the explosion. "I feel a little heart tug, but I’m not complaining. It’s for the good of us all."
The demolition of the silo, which was emptied years ago of its Minuteman III missile, is the last in a series required under the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty known as START I.
Negotiated in the 1980s between former U.S. President Ronald Reagan and former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, each side committed to reduce nuclear warheads in their intercontinental ballistic missile forces to no more than 6,000 each. The deal was signed in 1991 by Gorbachev and former U.S. President George Bush and took effect in December 1994.
Under the successor START II treaty between Moscow and Washington, each side would further cut their warheads to about 3,500 each. Russian President Vladimir Putin is pressing for further joint cuts to about 1,500 warheads each.
But the disputes with Russia over arms control have not ended with the Cold War. President George W. Bush, the son of Bush senior, has authorized groundbreaking for new missile silos in Alaska as part of his controversial proposal to build a U.S. missile defense system.
Bush on Thursday made his most emphatic statement yet that the United States would withdraw from the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile treaty to clear the way for the missile defense system.
Russian officials have warned that such moves could be destabilizing, possibly leading Russia to build a new generation of missiles with multiple warheads.
The U.S. military still maintains several hundred Minuteman III missiles in silos located at Air Force bases in Wyoming, Montana and North Dakota, but the 150 silos that were part of the Grand Forks Air Force Base command have all now been dismantled, with the exception of one. The Air Force hopes to turn that one into a memorial.
The missile silo destroyed on Friday was one of a group of 15 such silos controlled by a single launch facility where around-the-clock crews once stood ready to push the buttons needed to fire the missiles if ordered.
Situated at least a mile (1.6 km) from the nearest farm house, the silo sat silent and almost unseen for decades in the middle of a wheat field.
"They used to drive around it with their tractors," said Air Force Staff Sgt. Scott T. Sturkol, a spokesman from the Grand Forks Air Force base.
"For 36 years we’ve been on alert 24-7 to protect us from any foreign country," said missile facility technician Sgt. Steve Marback who witnessed the explosion. "I feel a little heart tug, but I’m not complaining. It’s for the good of us all."
The demolition of the silo, which was emptied years ago of its Minuteman III missile, is the last in a series required under the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty known as START I.
Negotiated in the 1980s between former U.S. President Ronald Reagan and former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, each side committed to reduce nuclear warheads in their intercontinental ballistic missile forces to no more than 6,000 each. The deal was signed in 1991 by Gorbachev and former U.S. President George Bush and took effect in December 1994.
Under the successor START II treaty between Moscow and Washington, each side would further cut their warheads to about 3,500 each. Russian President Vladimir Putin is pressing for further joint cuts to about 1,500 warheads each.
But the disputes with Russia over arms control have not ended with the Cold War. President George W. Bush, the son of Bush senior, has authorized groundbreaking for new missile silos in Alaska as part of his controversial proposal to build a U.S. missile defense system.
Bush on Thursday made his most emphatic statement yet that the United States would withdraw from the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile treaty to clear the way for the missile defense system.
Russian officials have warned that such moves could be destabilizing, possibly leading Russia to build a new generation of missiles with multiple warheads.
The U.S. military still maintains several hundred Minuteman III missiles in silos located at Air Force bases in Wyoming, Montana and North Dakota, but the 150 silos that were part of the Grand Forks Air Force Base command have all now been dismantled, with the exception of one. The Air Force hopes to turn that one into a memorial.
The missile silo destroyed on Friday was one of a group of 15 such silos controlled by a single launch facility where around-the-clock crews once stood ready to push the buttons needed to fire the missiles if ordered.
Situated at least a mile (1.6 km) from the nearest farm house, the silo sat silent and almost unseen for decades in the middle of a wheat field.
"They used to drive around it with their tractors," said Air Force Staff Sgt. Scott T. Sturkol, a spokesman from the Grand Forks Air Force base.
The U.S. military still maintains several hundred Minuteman III missiles in silos located at Air Force bases in Wyoming, Montana and North Dakota, but the 150 silos that were part of the Grand Forks Air Force Base command have all now been dismantled, with the exception of one. The Air Force hopes to turn that one into a memorial.
The missile silo destroyed on Friday was one of a group of 15 such silos controlled by a single launch facility where around-the-clock crews once stood ready to push the buttons needed to fire the missiles if ordered.
Situated at least a mile (1.6 km) from the nearest farm house, the silo sat silent and almost unseen for decades in the middle of a wheat field.
"They used to drive around it with their tractors," said Air Force Staff Sgt. Scott T. Sturkol, a spokesman from the Grand Forks Air Force base.
Bureau Report