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[EXCERPTS] FY98 DEFENSE DEPARTMENT BUDGET BUDGET REQUEST
FEBRUARY 26, 1997 - HOUSE APPROPRIATIONS NATIONAL SECURITY SUBCOMMITTEE

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CUNNINGHAM: I personally believe, after sitting on ships and watching how Upper Tier ties into THAAD is very important, not only the theater missile defense capability that we have. I think it is even higher than our intercontinental ballistic defense, which is more important now. You're not going to survive if you don't protect your troops on the ground.

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COHEN: OK. One quick response on Navy Upper Tier. I am told that that really is a technology problem rather than a funding problem, that the real challenge is how do you have a smaller missile on board a ship which can in fact make the kind of discrimination that is necessary when you have penetration aids put on the type of missiles that we're likely to confront.

So it's having a smaller missile with the kind of sophistication will allow you to discriminate out of the atmosphere in terms of identifying those, so it's really technology driven now, but I agree with you in terms of its importance.