With the on-going strained foreign relations between the United States and Russia about military technology prowess, some pundits have predicted the possibility of another or new cold war between the two countries. Whereas the two countries have enjoyed mutual bilateral relations over the past few decades, the recent years have seen the relations between them deteriorating, to an extent of President Putin and Obama differing openly on various issues as recently witnessed during the70th United Nations General Assembly meeting in 2015. This essay explores the history of the altercations and conflicts between the US and Russia over technology. For example, as reported by Gaist (1), recent plans by Russia to build a naval technology stations in the Black Sea has escalated the tensions between the two nations of late.
According to Sanger and Broad, the altercations and conflicts or poor relations between Washington and Moscow may mainly be attributed to what is termed the arms race, with each nation trying to outdo the other in stockpiling of weapons and advancing its military technology (3).The relationship between these two countries can be traced from the period right after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War. Since 1991, the two countries have had relatively warm foreign relations and considered each other as political and economic allies. The two countries even cooperated with each other during the world wars, with the US assisting Russia militarily to defeat its enemy nations. However, this seems not to be the case anymore when the US sees a resurgent Russia advancing in terms of military technology and posing a threat to its status as the world’s superpower.
It has also been claimed that the cause of the recent spate of conflicts and altercations between Russia and the US is all about fears by the US that Russia may be secretly building nuclear weapon through technology and supporting countries like North Korea which the US sees as a global threat to peace (Snager & Broad 6). The altercations may also be blamed on the current standoff between the two nations over Ukraine. It is claimed that Russia is supporting separatist groups and troops in Eastern Ukraine to fight against the NATO–allied forces in the region. Moreover, Russia’s recent successful launch of a Bulava-ICBM long range missile that directly targets the US has sparked a row between the two countries (Taylor 4). The current standoff about military technology is also quintessential to the 1962 incident when President Kennedy compelled the Soviet Union’s withdrawal of its nuclear missiles in Cuba.
Further, the technological rivalry between the US and Russia stems from Russia’s fear that the US space machines and technologies may pose a threat to its future military powers thus leading to constant conflicts between the two nations. Moreover, the technology wars between the two nations relate to Russia’s military technology which the US fears may not only be a threat to itself, but also a threat to the international community as a whole. The need to prevent Russia from further developing military technology weapons of mass destruction is also believed to be behind the tensions between Russia and the US. The main type of weapon that is the bone of contention here is the supposed development of nuclear weapons by Russia, a move which the US sees as a threat to its security and a challenge to its military prowess and technology. The relentless efforts by Russia to restore its stature as the world power has led Putin to resort to use of force as a foreign policy against enemy nations, a move that the US considers as a military challenge. Questions are already being asked by the Pentagon as to just what Russia is capable of in terms of military technology and an imagination of how a war between the two countries would look like were it to be sparked by the current standoff over military technological power struggle. According to Thackrah, over the past few decades after the end of the two world wars, Russia has managed to accomplish high levels of military technology and spent lots of money on high-end weapons than the US, thus sparking a technological war between them amid fears that either one of them could use their technology to start a war against the other (215).
Additionally, the conflicts between the US and Russia may be explained from the fact that the US spends more of its national budget on military technology equipment and defense than Russia does. This state of affairs has challenged the former Soviet State to develop sophisticated technologies to counteract the US military technologies. These technological weapons include massive submarine equipment, SU-30 fighter jets, and electronic kits and air defense equipment, some of which officials in the US Pentagon claim are being purchased to start a war against the US and its allies. Besides, as Mchugh puts it, the decision by the US to send its military radar technology to assist the Ukrainian military in its fight against the Russian troops has also exacerbated the conflict between Russia and the US, with the former viewing the latter as a threat in terms of military technology development (2). This equipment has the capability of detecting missiles that are being used by the Russian forces in the Ukraine conflict that has now turned largely into a technological war of might between the US and Russian forces.
Works Cited
Gaist, Thomas. “Naval buildup in Black Sea escalated US-Russian tensions.” World Socialist Web Site. 20 Jan. 2016. Web. 8 May. 2016. <https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2016/01/20/blac-j20.html>
Mchugh, Jess. “Ukraine-Russia conflict 2015: US to send radar technology to Ukrainian military.” International Business Times. 10 Jan. 2015. Web. 8 May. 2016. < http://www.ibtimes.com/ukraine-russia-conflict-2015-us-send-radar-technology- ukrainian-military-2122486 >
Taylor, Seffrey. “The seething anger of Putin’s Russia: How U.S.-Russian relations became so dysfunctional—and dangerous.” The Atlantic. 22 Sep. 2014. Web. 9 May. 2016. < http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2014/09/russia-west-united-states- past-future-conflict/380533/ >
Thackrah,R. John. Routledge companion to military conflict since 1945. London & New York: Routledge, 2008. Print.
Sanger, David and William J Broad. “U.S.-Russia nuclear deal stalls as tensions over Ukraine rise.” The New York Times. 2 Aug. 2016. Web. 8 May. 2016. <http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/03/world/europe/us-nuclear-deal-with-russia-fails- as-tensions-rise.html?_r=0>
