- 2 days ago
Nga Lufta ne Kosove
bombardimet e NATO ne serbi
lajmet e Shteteve Perendimore
bombardimet e NATO ne serbi
lajmet e Shteteve Perendimore
Category
đ„
Short filmTranscript
00:00...was carrying civilian traffic.
00:02And while the refugees fight for food,
00:06the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
00:07says it won't admit any more.
00:19Hello and welcome, I'm Anita McNaught.
00:21Airstrikes are continuing against Serbia
00:24with non-military targets again being hit.
00:27Serbian television has reported that NATO jets
00:29have destroyed a second major bridge over the Danube.
00:32Meanwhile, the first documentary evidence
00:34of what Serb forces are believed to be doing inside Kosovo
00:37has been obtained by the BBC.
00:40It is a video which appears to show the aftermath
00:42of a Serb operation against one village.
00:45The man who gave the tape to us
00:47said he was in the village of Akrushe Mardi
00:50when it was attacked by Serb militia.
00:52He escaped and spent five days in hiding
00:55before returning to the village with a video camera.
00:58The horrific footage showing the bodies of villagers,
01:01many shot in the head,
01:03appears to confirm the testimony of thousands of refugees
01:06who are still pouring out of Kosovo.
01:08Our report contains graphic pictures.
01:11In the last few days, a thousand words have been used
01:14to describe what's happening inside Kosovo.
01:17Refugees have been asked to separate fact from hearsay,
01:20rumour from detail.
01:21They've had to recall scenes they'd sooner forget.
01:24In an act of extraordinary courage,
01:27this man, Melaim Bellamica,
01:29has smuggled out pictures of the terror across the border.
01:32To have been caught with the videotape you're about to see
01:34would have meant certain death.
01:38Melaim lived in the village of Khrush Emaade,
01:40his birthplace.
01:42On the night of the 25th of March,
01:44the village was surrounded by Serb forces.
01:46Women, children and the aged were taken away.
01:49A group of men tried to escape.
01:51They didn't get very far.
01:56Most of the pictures are even more gruesome than these.
02:00Many were obviously killed with a single bullet to the head.
02:05Melaim says over a hundred died
02:07when the Serb forces shelled the area.
02:09He couldn't count them all.
02:11Melaim hid for seven days before he took these pictures.
02:14They were killed one by one.
02:20A group of Serbs were on the top of the hill.
02:22Others came from behind.
02:24Our men were captured
02:25and the Serbs killed them one after the other.
02:28All these victims looked like young men.
02:30Were they members of the Kosovo Liberation Army?
02:34They were all my age.
02:39No one was in the KLA.
02:40We were all farmers.
02:42This was murder most intimate.
02:45The killers knew some of the villagers,
02:47calling them out by name.
02:50There were more than hundred soldiers.
02:53Some of the Serbs had masks.
02:55Others were in uniform.
02:57Some were from the area even known to the community.
03:01Melaim has given me a list of 26 victims,
03:04people he knew well,
03:06many from their days as classmates.
03:07I've done this so that my son,
03:12my grandson,
03:13the next generation,
03:15will never forget what the Serbs have done to the Albanian people.
03:19As the evidence of calculated terror mounts up,
03:22the diplomats must surely adjust their notion of Kosovo's future status.
03:27It's inconceivable that these people will ever go back to a Kosovo
03:30that has any formal relationship with Serbia.
03:34An international protectorate is more likely.
03:36George Alagaya, BBC News,
03:39Kukes in northern Albania.
03:42The official Yugoslav news agency says
03:44seven civilians were injured in one of the attacks
03:47on the Fridon Bridge in the city of Novi Sad.
03:51NATO's leaders have once again reiterated
03:53their determination to continue the air campaign against Serbia.
03:56Serb television shows pictures of what it says
04:03is NATO's latest bombing raid.
04:05The Freedom Bridge in the northern Serbian city of Novi Sad
04:08appears destroyed.
04:10The Serbs say civilian traffic was crossing when the bomb fell
04:13and that seven were injured.
04:17Two out of three bridges in Novi Sad have now been bombed.
04:21This seems to be evidence of a concerted attack
04:24by the alliance on the Yugoslav infrastructure.
04:26In the so-called phase three of its operation,
04:29NATO wants to limit President Milosevic's ability
04:32to move men and machinery around the country.
04:35As part of that mission,
04:37NATO troops in Bosnia have again joined the conflict,
04:40destroying a key rail link that runs through Bosnia
04:43on its way from Belgrade to Montenegro.
04:46And another front appears to be opening up for the alliance
04:50as it takes an increasingly active role,
04:52getting aid to thousands of Kosovan refugees.
04:54The persistent question many are asking
04:57is how far the alliance will take this.
04:59Will it send ground troops into Kosovo?
05:02The basic thought about use of ground force has not changed.
05:06And that is that there is not an intention or plan
05:12to put a ground force into a combat environment
05:16to invade Kosovo.
05:18We have said all along that the ground force
05:22would go into a missive environment.
05:25Ground troops aside,
05:26the alliance has no qualms about increasing its firepower.
05:30The USS Theodore Roosevelt is on its way to the Adriatic,
05:33and a further 12 stealth bombers are also being dispatched.
05:37NATO is doing all it can to win this war
05:39without getting too close.
05:41Stephen Gibbs, BBC News.
05:43It illustrates a lot of the stuff
05:59that's actually happening over there.
06:01Fly over real mountains,
06:02pass through real valleys.
06:04At the Jane's Combat Simulations Division
06:06of Electronic Arts,
06:08programmers use actual digital maps
06:10and satellite photos
06:11to help replicate the Balkan terrain.
06:13True color and elevation is what they call it,
06:15so it's the right brown or orange or green,
06:18and the right mountains are in the right places.
06:20Okay, there's the missile being fired.
06:22Some news agencies and military writers
06:24use the images to illustrate the war in progress.
06:27There's our target,
06:29and target is destroyed.
06:31Former Navy aviator David Bonacci
06:33says that all good programmers
06:35try for realism in the cockpit.
06:38It's basically a game
06:41being used to illustrate
06:44what's happening in real life.
06:46Game designers force players
06:48to think like a pilot under fire.
06:50A lot of times you see the war,
06:51you know, it's big and it's grand,
06:53but really it boils down to people
06:54doing their tasks,
06:56their layout for them.
06:57On a stealth bombing run,
06:58Bonacci is hit.
06:59Incoming missile, 6 o'clock.
07:01Oops.
07:01We're going in.
07:02Warning, engine, fire.
07:04Warning, transfer pump.
07:05I'm going to go ahead and eject that here.
07:07Bad news.
07:09Game fans contrive their own missions
07:11and play against each other on the Internet.
07:13A new one follows the real-life rescue
07:15of the American pilot last Saturday
07:17with a mission to destroy
07:19the remnants of his crashed plane.
07:22War games are among the most popular computer games.
07:25They offer adventure with safety,
07:27The worst threat posed
07:29in these simulated skies
07:30is to the pilot's self-esteem.
07:33Greg Lefebvre, CNN, San Francisco.
07:36News that enough food has been stored
07:38to feed 400,000 people for six months.
07:43The Russians are now moving seven ships
07:45to the Mediterranean,
07:46they say, to observe the situation.
07:49Under fire once again,
07:51and the misery growing from massive refugees
07:53running out of places to go.
07:55Just minutes ago,
07:56a CNN correspondent reported
07:58seeing several explosions in Belgrade.
08:00We are told that fires
08:02are lighting up the city skies.
08:04The latest assault follows others on Saturday.
08:07NATO taking out a second bridge
08:08in Novi Sad,
08:09which is Yugoslavia's second largest city.
08:12A cruise missile exploded
08:13around 8 in the evening local time,
08:15destroying a bridge
08:16near a Serb television station.
08:18That bridge is considered
08:20an important link over the Danube River.
08:22Serb TV reports civilian injuries
08:24in that bombing,
08:25showing images of people
08:27reportedly injured
08:28as they were crossing the bridge.
08:30There are also unconfirmed reports
08:32that another bridge
08:33west of Novi Sad was hit.
08:35Meanwhile,
08:35the refugee crisis grows.
08:37NATO reports
08:38765,000 Kosovars
08:40are displaced from their homes,
08:42and it is warning
08:43that if the current pace
08:44of the exodus continues,
08:46all ethnic Albanians
08:47could be forced from Kosovo
08:48in 10 to 20 days.
08:49While hoping to help NATO
08:51bring an end to the crisis,
08:52the United States
08:53is sending more stealth fighters
08:54to Europe.
08:55The first four of 13 stealth
08:57F-117A fighters
08:59took off from
09:00Holloman Air Force Base
09:01in New Mexico Saturday.
09:03One fighter will go
09:04to Aviano Air Base in Italy.
09:06It will replace the U.S. plane
09:07that went down over Yugoslavia
09:08last weekend.
09:10And the others are head
09:11to Spangdalum in Germany.
09:13And the U.S. Air Force
09:14says 250 support personnel
09:16will be going to Germany
09:17by transport plane.
09:19in the Yugoslavia.
09:21And we're going now
09:22to the Pentagon
09:22for an update
09:23in CNN's David Ensor.
09:24David?
09:26The announcement
09:27the USS Teddy Roosevelt
09:29and its carrier battle group
09:31will join NATO forces
09:32in operations
09:33against Yugoslavia
09:34means about another
09:3550 combat planes
09:36for the Alliance arsenal.
09:38It also adds
09:39several more ships
09:40capable of firing
09:41cruise missiles.
09:42The Pentagon is also sending
09:4413 F-117
09:45stealth fighter bombers.
09:47NATO officials say
09:48they will use
09:49the increased firepower
09:50until Belgrade backs down.
09:52We are determined
09:53to keep this going
09:53until we stop
09:54the Serb armed forces.
09:55And we're hoping
09:56to do that very soon
09:57in the next few days.
09:58Our pressure is intensifying
10:00all the time.
10:01But NATO and Pentagon officials
10:03remain frustrated
10:04they have been able
10:05to do so little
10:06to stop alleged
10:07Serb atrocities
10:08in Kosovo.
10:09We continue to attack
10:11those things
10:12that sustain
10:13their forces.
10:15As we've said
10:15from the beginning
10:16you cannot stop
10:17this level of violence
10:19in Kosovo
10:20from air power
10:21instantly.
10:22Pentagon officials
10:23admit the A-10 planes
10:25designed to target
10:26tanks and troops
10:27on the ground
10:28have yet to fire
10:29in anger.
10:30A spokesman says however
10:31that Apache ground attack
10:33helicopters
10:33may soon be deployed.
10:35I would expect
10:36action to be
10:38forthcoming on that
10:40and that's all
10:43I can say
10:43at this stage.
10:44One days a week?
10:45I would expect
10:46relatively soon.
10:47The Apache helicopters
10:49could be very effective
10:50against Serb tanks
10:51and artillery.
10:52They move fast
10:53and low
10:54with considerable
10:55night capability.
10:56But they would require
10:57several hundred
10:58Army support personnel
10:59and their deployment
11:00would raise the risk
11:02of American casualties.
11:04The humanitarian
11:05tragedy is also
11:06getting Pentagon attention.
11:07A giant C-17 cargo plane
11:10left the U.S.
11:11carrying food
11:11for refugees
11:12in Albania.
11:13You saw these yesterday
11:14but this is a packet
11:17that holds enough food
11:19to feed one refugee
11:21for a day.
11:23It's about...
11:23An hour ago or so
11:25that we heard
11:25those two large explosions
11:28in the distance.
11:29Serbian television
11:30is reporting
11:31that a plant
11:33which makes
11:34heating units
11:35was hit
11:36according to
11:37the television station.
11:39Five workers
11:40were inside the plant
11:41at the time
11:42of the impact
11:43and those five workers
11:44have now reported
11:45to be hospitalized
11:46and in okay conditions
11:48although we don't have
11:49any latest information
11:50about how well
11:52they're doing
11:53or not.
11:53Certainly judging
11:54from what I can see
11:56now outside my window
11:57there is a huge
11:59black cloud of smoke
12:00rising into the sky
12:01against what appears
12:03to be against
12:04a full moon
12:04and an orange glow
12:06so it appears that
12:07from what I can tell
12:09from my window
12:10there was a direct hit
12:11against this plant.
12:14But Serb television
12:16claims one of the targets
12:18was a central heating factory
12:19in the southwest suburbs.
12:21It's the second time
12:22NATO has attacked
12:23the center
12:24of the Yugoslavian capital.
12:27We're now bringing you
12:28a package from
12:29Alison Jack.
12:30For the second night
12:33Belgrade burns.
12:35At least seven explosions
12:36have shaken the capital
12:37in the early hours
12:38of this morning.
12:39The cruise missile attack
12:40is believed to have been launched
12:42from NATO warships
12:43in the Adriatic.
12:45There is devastation
12:46in New Belgrade.
12:48What appears to be
12:48an industrial plant
12:50is in flames.
12:51I'm outside now
12:52looking across
12:53an apartment block
12:54and then just behind that
12:55there's a massive orange
12:56glow in the sky.
12:57There's clearly
12:58huge, huge fire burning there.
13:00and we think
13:00it's some sort of
13:01public utility
13:02possibly some sort of
13:04hot water pumping station
13:05for the apartment blocks
13:07all around us.
13:07It really is
13:08a beautiful, clear night.
13:10There's a full moon there
13:12lighting up the city
13:13as well as the orange glow
13:14and a massive ball of smoke
13:16is now rising above
13:17the apartment blocks
13:17which will soon obscure
13:19that moon.
13:20The media in Belgrade
13:21are reporting
13:22that at least three people
13:24possibly night shift workers
13:25were injured in the attack.
13:28This appears to be
13:29the most aggressive
13:30strike so far.
13:32As well as the bombing
13:33of the heating station
13:35there are reports
13:36of further hits
13:37in the southwest suburbs
13:38in Novi Sad
13:40in the north
13:40and in southern Serbia too.
13:43The operation is ongoing
13:45and that, yeah,
13:47we had manned
13:48and unmanned assets out
13:51and at the moment
13:53everybody who should
13:54have been returned
13:55with this aircraft
13:56has returned.
13:58NATO had warned repeatedly
14:00that it would be
14:00stepping up its air campaign.
14:02Earlier in the evening
14:04two bridges were hit.
14:05This one in Novi Sad
14:07resulted in seven casualties
14:09according to Serbian TV.
14:11Alison Jack, Sky News.
14:13They never thought
14:16they'd be tackling
14:16a refugee crisis
14:17on this scale
14:18in Europe.
14:19There's 12 tonnes
14:20of supplies on board
14:21this plane.
14:22Most of it is medical aid,
14:23rehydration salts
14:24and penicillin.
14:26One RAF Hercules
14:27has already flown out
14:28to the area
14:29carrying 20 tonnes
14:30of tents
14:31and blankets.
14:32Well, it's a very busy time
14:34obviously
14:34but it's nice
14:35to be able to do something
14:36to help out
14:36when there is
14:37effectively a war going on.
14:39and people are obviously
14:41in very dire straits
14:42out there
14:43so anything we can do
14:43is all to the good.
14:45Also on board
14:46a British government
14:47aid official.
14:48This is obviously
14:48a very serious problem.
14:50There are many, many people
14:51out there
14:52that need of urgent help.
14:54Things have happened
14:55all over the world
14:56but of course
14:57this is the first time
14:57that it has happened
14:58in this sort of scale
15:00in Europe.
15:01This plane was destined
15:02for Skopje in Macedonia
15:04a flight of about four hours
15:05and then on to Tirana
15:07in Albania.
15:08It will be followed
15:09by another on Tuesday
15:10and many more after that.
15:12Andrew Moore, Sky News
15:13at RF Lynam
15:14in Wiltshire.
15:16From the cockpit
15:17of a US Navy P-3 Orion
15:19the Adriatic
15:20looks like a crowded place.
15:22At the moment
15:23an entire NATO fleet
15:24patrols these waters
15:25but within days
15:27this area may get
15:28even more crowded.
15:30A Russian reconnaissance ship
15:31is already on its way here.
15:33Part of its mission
15:34is to monitor
15:35the activities of NATO
15:36but the Russians
15:37could be watched too.
15:39by planes like this P-3.
15:41Anytime you bring
15:42a ship out here
15:44that's not one of ours
15:45it raises the stakes.
15:47It makes the threat
15:48just a little bit greater
15:49until you realize
15:51what aspect
15:52they're out here.
15:54The P-3 is an aging
15:56Navy war horse
15:57but recently
15:58it's been outfitted
15:59with new technology
16:00that gives it
16:01much greater versatility.
16:02It's a multi-mission
16:04all-weather
16:06multi-mission
16:07capable aircraft.
16:09It does quite a few
16:09different things.
16:10Anti-submarine warfare
16:11anti-surface warfare
16:13we do reconnaissance.
16:16Helping the P-3
16:17in its reconnaissance role
16:18is a new upgraded radar.
16:20It works both day and night
16:22in all weather conditions.
16:24Once the P-3's radar
16:25picks up traffic
16:26anything from a battleship
16:28to an ocean liner
16:29its cameras zoom in
16:30for a closer look.
16:32These pictures can then
16:33be transmitted
16:34immediately to the ground.
16:36For the past few days
16:37P-3's have been
16:39on full battle alert
16:40to ward off possible attacks
16:42from submarines
16:43and surface ships.
16:45They're fully armed
16:46with torpedoes
16:47and cluster bombs.
16:49So far
16:50P-3's haven't fired
16:51any of their weapons.
16:53As for the future
16:54crews say they're prepared
16:55for any eventuality.
16:57We practice
16:58we train for that threat
16:59and we have
17:00to the assets
17:01that we work with
17:02in conjunction
17:03to keep everybody safe.
17:06How safe the Adriatic
17:08will be is hard to predict
17:09but if the Russians
17:10do come
17:11the missions of the P-3's
17:13will become
17:14even more sensitive.
17:16Satinda Bindra
17:16CNN
17:17aboard a US Navy P-3
17:19above the Adriatic.
17:21Whilst I have
17:22no imagery to show you
17:24I can assure you
17:25that the very hot spots
17:26that we have imaged
17:27and coverage
17:28and coverage
17:28from Serbian television
17:30give us a very warm feeling
17:32as to the success
17:33of these attacks.
17:36Surface to air missile activity
17:38was again light
17:39and happily
17:40once again
17:41we lost no aircraft.
17:44Although one F-16
17:45diverted into another base
17:47with a mechanical problem
17:48it landed safely.
17:52Equally
17:52we did not claim
17:53any Serbian aircraft
17:54in the air.
17:57If you recall yesterday
17:59I showed you
18:00Serbian TV pictures
18:01of the damaged
18:02MUP building
18:03in Belgrade.
18:05I can now show you
18:07some of our own imagery
18:08confirming the damage.
18:10This is the building
18:12before the attack
18:12and you will note
18:13that I have highlighted
18:15with a green arrow
18:15the position of the hospital
18:17which has been mentioned
18:18in the media.
18:21And the second slide
18:22shows you
18:23it after the attack.
18:25You will notice
18:26the destruction
18:27on the front end
18:28of the building.
18:32Finally
18:33I have one clip
18:34to show you today.
18:35It is a weapon video
18:37from one of our
18:37recent attacks
18:38against a radar site
18:40near Pristina.
18:41This site
18:42had been an important part
18:43of the Fry
18:44integrated air defence system
18:46within Kosovo.
18:48This element
18:49no longer poses
18:50a threat
18:50to our air crews.
18:52It was another devastating hit
19:17against Yugoslavia's capital.
19:19The fuel tanks
19:20of Belgrade's
19:21largest heating plant
19:22up in flames.
19:25According to officials here
19:26none of the containers
19:28remained intact.
19:30They say the plant
19:30is now completely
19:31out of commission.
19:33Vital parts
19:33of its engines
19:34destroyed.
19:36One security guard
19:37according to the plant manager
19:38died
19:39burned alive.
19:41Three more
19:42are hospitalized.
19:42All our workers
19:48are in deep shock.
19:50We can't believe
19:52that there is a people
19:55who can target
19:59this type of facilities.
20:00Whether this complex
20:02was used by the army
20:03or other military purposes
20:05as NATO claims
20:06is not clear.
20:07However,
20:08authorities here insist
20:09this complex
20:10was providing heat
20:12to more than a million
20:13people in Belgrade.
20:15Across town
20:16the aftermath
20:16of another raging inferno.
20:19Serbian television
20:20says this police academy
20:21was hit
20:22in the middle of the night.
20:23No casualties
20:24were reported here
20:25as most of NATO's
20:27likely targets
20:27like police stations
20:28and some government buildings
20:30sources say
20:31have been cleared
20:32of all their personnel.
20:34But it took
20:35the firefighters
20:36several hours
20:36to control the blaze
20:38and the nearby
20:38military hospital
20:39according to television reports
20:41was also damaged
20:42by the blast.
20:44Away from Belgrade
20:45Serbian television
20:46showed the aftermath
20:47of another NATO attack.
20:50The Freedom Bridge
20:51in Novi Sad
20:52Yugoslavia's
20:53second largest city
20:54collapsed into the water.
20:56As a result
20:57of the strike
20:58Serb officials say
20:59electricity has been
21:00cut off in the area.
21:02Now two of the city's
21:04three bridges
21:04are downed
21:05blocking one of Europe's
21:07most important waterways.
21:09A Serbian television report
21:10said that no air raid
21:11sirens were heard
21:12and several people
21:14were using the bridge
21:15at the time of the explosion
21:16causing injuries.
21:17What Serbian television
21:18describes as
21:19a thermal electric plant,
21:21a police academy
21:22and an oil refinery.
21:24Yugoslav media
21:25say three people
21:25were killed
21:26and at least eight injured
21:27in attacks across Serbia.
21:29In some other developments
21:30NATO says
21:31Ibrahim Rogovar
21:32the moderate ethnic
21:33Albanian leader
21:34is being held
21:35by Serb forces
21:36at his house.
21:37Reports from
21:38the U.S.
21:38Defense Department.
21:41Thirteen F-117
21:42stealth fighter bombers
21:43taking off
21:44from the United States.
21:45One to replace
21:46the plane that was
21:47shot down,
21:48twelve more
21:48to augment
21:49NATO forces.
21:50The announcement
21:51that the USS
21:52Teddy Roosevelt
21:53and its carrier battle group
21:54will also join
21:55NATO forces
21:56in operations
21:56against Yugoslavia
21:57means about
21:58another 50 combat planes
22:00for the Alliance arsenal.
22:02It also adds
22:02several more ships
22:04capable of firing
22:05cruise missiles.
22:06We are determined
22:07to keep this going
22:07until we stop
22:08the Serb armed forces
22:09and we're hoping
22:10to do that very soon
22:11in the next few days.
22:12Our pressure is
22:13intensifying
22:14all the time.
22:15But NATO
22:16and Pentagon officials
22:17remain frustrated
22:18they have been able
22:19to do so little
22:20to stop alleged
22:21Serb atrocities
22:22in Kosovo.
22:24We continue to attack
22:25those things
22:26that sustain
22:27their forces.
22:28As we've said
22:29from the beginning
22:30you cannot stop
22:31this level of violence
22:33in Kosovo
22:34from air power
22:35instantly.
22:36Pentagon officials
22:37admit the A-10 planes
22:39designed to target
22:40tanks and troops
22:41on the ground
22:42have yet to fire
22:43in anger.
22:44A spokesman says
22:45however that Apache
22:46ground attack helicopters
22:47may soon be deployed.
22:49The Apache helicopters
22:50could be very effective
22:52against Serb tanks
22:53and artillery.
22:54They move fast
22:55and low
22:55with considerable
22:56night capability.
22:58But they would require
22:59several hundred
23:00army support personnel
23:01and their deployment
23:02would raise the risk
23:03of American casualties.
23:06The humanitarian tragedy
23:07is also getting
23:08Pentagon attention.
23:09A giant C-17 cargo plane
23:11left the U.S.
23:12carrying food
23:13for refugees in Albania.
23:15You saw these yesterday
23:16but this is a packet
23:18that holds enough food
23:20to feed one refugee
23:23for a day.
23:24It's about 2200 calories
23:26and it is all
23:29it is non-meat
23:31so it can be eaten
23:32by people of all faiths.
23:34What Pentagon officials
23:35are most counting on
23:36is a change in the weather.
23:38For pilots officials
23:39say the last 48 hours
23:40have been the worst.
23:42They need a break
23:42in the clouds
23:43to be allowed
23:44to use laser-guided weapons
23:46against Serbian forces
23:47on the ground
23:48in Kosovo.
23:50David Ensor, CNN,
23:51the Pentagon.
23:54Fired from a distance
23:55the cruise missile
23:56has reduced the risk
23:57to U.S. pilots
23:58and become essential
23:59to U.S. military strategy.
24:01But so many
24:02air-launched cruise missiles
24:03have been fired
24:04in both Iraq
24:04and the Balkans.
24:06The U.S. is running low
24:07on these weapons.
24:08When the NATO action
24:09in Kosovo began
24:10and the U.S. Air Force
24:11had about 150
24:12air-to-ground cruise missiles.
24:14Now Pentagon sources
24:15tell CNN
24:16that number
24:17is less than 100.
24:20While there's no shortage
24:21of sea-launched
24:22cruise missiles
24:23the dwindling number
24:24of the air-launched version
24:25could prompt a change
24:26of strategy
24:26by NATO commanders.
24:28It does reduce
24:29the military's options
24:30and particularly
24:32it forces them
24:33to rely more
24:33on manned aircraft
24:35thus putting pilots
24:36in harm's way.
24:37The air-to-ground
24:38cruise missile
24:38is a heavy weapon
24:39designed to be used
24:40in the early stages
24:41of an attack
24:42against fixed targets
24:43like command headquarters.
24:45The problem
24:45for the Pentagon is
24:46because of a treaty
24:47with Russia
24:47it can't build anymore
24:49and most of what
24:50the U.S. has
24:51some 1,400
24:52are tipped
24:53with nuclear warheads.
24:54The Air Force
24:55has asked Congress
24:56for more than
24:5650 million dollars
24:57to convert over 90
24:58of these missiles
24:59to non-nuclear versions
25:00but that could take time.
25:02It would be a fairly
25:03involved kind of a thing
25:04because there's
25:05a lot different
25:06about a weapon
25:08with a nuclear
25:09warhead in it
25:10than one
25:11with a conventional
25:12warhead in it.
25:12There's a lot
25:13of differences
25:13between those weapons
25:14and so it's not
25:16necessarily a simple task
25:18but it's a task
25:19which can be accomplished.
25:21Analysts say
25:21a new generation
25:22of long-range weapons
25:23is in the pipeline.
25:24Its accuracy
25:25and its ability
25:25to reduce casualties
25:26makes the cruise missile
25:27a popular weapon
25:28but the dwindling number
25:30available to military planners
25:31suggests it's a victim
25:32of its own success.
25:34Jonathan Akin
25:35for CNN
25:35Washington.
25:36Thank you.
25:36Thank you.
25:36Thank you.
25:36Thank you.
25:36Thank you.
Recommended
1:39:20
|
Up next
1:54:21
1:27:30
1:30:43
1:39:22
1:01:07
19:33
25:27
25:42
27:42
19:37
23:39
23:57
25:21
25:21
19:31
27:38
25:36
25:24
25:22
25:23
19:32
25:23
25:32
27:43
Be the first to comment