Press Releases
September 12, 2007
Conrad Works to Secure ND's Missile Sites
Senator Secures Funding to Provide Added Layer of Security at ICBM Sites
Washington – A U.S. Senate committee today approved $13.5 million in funding Senator Kent Conrad requested to increase security at Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) sites in North Dakota and across the nation.
“Al Qaeda has repeatedly said they aim to acquire a nuclear weapon, making our ICBM sites a prime target for terrorists. It is vital that we ensure these sites are as secure as possible. This additional funding will give us one more layer of protection,” Senator Conrad said.
The funding, included as part of the Fiscal Year 2008 Defense Appropriations bill, will pay for the Remote Visual Assessment (RVA) program, a major component in the ICBM security modernization efforts.
The RVA program will provide real time launch facility video data to ICBM security forces. This data will allow forces to respond to real threats more quickly, with appropriate force and better situational awareness. In addition, deploying the RVA program would cut down on the current wear and tear on equipment and personnel, resulting from responses to false alarms.
“Missile wing security forces respond to launch facilities each and every time there is an alarm. Today however, they do so without knowing what threat they may face. The RVA will give our security forces the ability to assess the threat before they arrive on scene,” Senator Conrad said. “It will allow them to know what they are up against.”
Senator Conrad is the chairman of the Senate ICBM coalition, which works to protect the ICBM force. He is working to secure funding to fully modernize the nation’s Minuteman III force. In total, the Defense Appropriations bill provides over $500 million for ICBM modernization.
The current fleet of Minuteman III missiles is located at Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana, F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Wyoming, and Minot Air Force Base, which controls 150 Minuteman III missiles spread across North Dakota’s northwestern landscape.
