NewsMiner:
A military budget bill with a requirement for increased missile interceptor tests passed the U.S. Senate Tuesday.
U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, introduced the amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act. The amendment requires annual tests of the Ground-based Midcourse Defense system, which can use silos at either Fort Greely near Delta Junction or Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The amendment gives the federal Missile Defense Agency some flexibility. It allows the agency to skip the tests if it gives Congress written notice that the tests lack funding, would likely lead to failure or would jeopardize national security.
The Ground-based Midcourse Defense system is intended to attack an enemy missile midflight, destroying the missile and preventing it from reaching its target. Since 2004, the Missile Defense Agency has conducted 17 intercept tests of the system, nine of them successful. The frequency of tests has slowed in recent years, with the most recent test in June 2014.
Sullivan said he added the amendment because of recent advancements in nuclear weapon and missile technology in North Korea
