A4sForever said:I didn't say "I"CBM .... I said "ballistic missile"..... and one would suppose there are all sorts of range capabilities available to various missiles, just like there are all sorts of delivery vehicles, "I"CBM or not. One size doesn't fit all. For example, to quote from Article II of "The Treaty Between the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on the Elimination of Their Intermediate-Range and Shorter-Range Missiles" -- State Department website (*whew* ... State Department -- wordy or what?) , in force June 1, 1988:
For the purposes of this Treaty:
1. The term "ballistic missile" means a missile that has a ballistic trajectory over most of its flight path. The term "ground-launched ballistic missile (GLBM)" means a ground-launched ballistic missile that is a weapon-delivery vehicle.
5. The term "intermediate-range missile" means a GLBM or a GLCM having a range capability in excess of 1000 kilometers but not in excess of 5500 kilometers.
So ... 5500 kilometers =3,417.5 miles .... hardly going to reach the East Coast from China or N. Korea .... but Hawaii? ALOHA.
Again, the devil is in the details. If a missile is capable of reaching the continental US from one of our 'enemies' who posses ballistic missiles, it would be by definition an ICBM, unless the enemy was in North or South America. If Cuba or Venezuela picks up some ballistic missiles, if they could afford them, then the whole US would be in the threat ring.
Some definitions of the different types of ballistic missiles:
http://www.answers.com/topic/surface-to-surface-missile
tactical SSMs are usually short-range ballistic missiles (SRBMs), <1000 km (600 mi)
strategic SSMs are usually:
medium-range ballistic missiles (MRBMs), 1000-3000 km (600-2000 mi)
intermediate-range ballistic missiles (IRBMs), 3000-4800 km (2000-3000 mi)
long-range ballistic missiles (LRBMs), 4800-8000 km (3000-5000 mi)
intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), >8000 km (5000 mi)
These are close to the generally accepted standards for differing definitions of ballistic missiles, though I have rarely seen LRBM, those generally fall under the ICBM definition.
If you are talking about Alaska or Hawaii then some of our 'enemies' might be able to hit them with IRBM's but it would be a stretch. Here is a pretty good explanation of the ballistic missile threeat from 'rogue' nations to the US:
http://www.globalsecurity.org/org/news/2001/e20010620rogue.htm
What is the point? Basing should take into consideration all threats but the credible ballistic missile threat to the US, specifically the 50 states, only comes from ICBM's and SLBM's. There are only 4 countries that posses that capability right now to hit the 50 US states with ballistic missiles: Russia, China, France and the UK. North Korea is still a big if, they only launched their longest range missile once and it failed http://www.cia.gov/cia/public_affairs/speeches/1998/walpole_speech_120898.html
To say that a particular base in the US should not be used because of the threat of ballistic missiles is not a valid argument, unless you are talking about Guam. If someone pops off an ICBM at us I would think we would have bigger problems on our plate than what bases were closed due to the BRAC.