Cruise Missile Penaid Nonproliferation: Hindering the Spread of Countermeasures Against Cruise Missile Defenses

Abstract

This research describes an approach to hindering the spread of countermeasures against cruise missile defenses. (Such countermeasures, when incorporated in an attacker’s missile or employed in conjunction with such a missile, are called penetration aids, or penaids.) This approach involved compiling an unclassified list of penaid-relevant items that might be subject to internationally agreed-upon export controls. The list is designed to fit into the export-control structure of the current international policy against the proliferation of missiles capable of delivering weapons of mass destruction. This policy, the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), sets rules agreed to by 34 governments for restricting the export of items, listed in a technical annex. This report recommends controls on 18 penaid-relevant items and subitems. Because cruise missile penaids can have applications either not restricted by the MTCR (e.g., for manned aircraft) or subject only to the regime’s less rigorous controls (e.g., for relatively small cruise missiles), the report recommends that the 18 items be subject to case-by-case export reviews under MTCR procedures. To be effective, these less rigorous controls will require energetic implementation, and cooperation by Russia and China will be critical.