Defense and Security Correspondent, Economist
Defense and Security Correspondent for the Economist magazine
PROFILE
Anton La Guardia
Guest
FROM Anton La Guardia
To the Point
Is It Possible to Ban Weapons in Space? Ronald Reagan's space-based missile-defense program died with the Cold War, but satellites are now key to America's military superiority, as our Army, Air Force and Navy -- even the Marine Corps -- rely on satellites for communication, surveillance and the targeting of "smart bombs." With space militarized, the big question now is whether it will be "weaponized." Today, at the UN Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, Switzerland, Russia and China proposed a treaty banning weapons in outer space. Three years ago, the US stood alone against 160 nations in opposition to such a treaty. Do Russia and China mean it? Is their real target the land-based missile defense proposed by President Bush? Would a race to put weapons in space be counter-productive for all the countries involved or is it inevitable?
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To the Point
Replacing Obamacare: Now you see it… now you don’t As the Senate deliberates replacing Obmacare, health coverage for millions of people is at stake. There've been no public hearings, and a draft measure won't be made public. Is the House version so unpopular that that Senate is hiding a version that looks much the same?
To the Point
What is Trump's plan for Middle East peace? On his first foreign tour, President Trump has promised "peace" between Israel and the Palestinians. Are there any details for re-starting talks that have been stalled for the past three years?
To the Point
Trump's 'America First' goes missing abroad In the Middle East, President Trump is changing some policies of the Obama Administration—and reversing his own campaign attacks on Islam as a religion that "hates us." We hear about his visit to Saudi Arabia and what's at stake for the rest of his foreign excursion.