§ 388.3 - Mission.

(a) BMDO shall manage, direct, and execute the Ballistic Missile Defense Program (BMDP) to achieve the following objectives:

(1) Enable deployment of an effective and rapidly relocatable advanced theater missile defense capability to protect forward-deployed and expeditionary elements of the Armed Forces of the United States as well as friends and allies of the United States;

(2) Develop options for, and deploy when directed, an antiballistic missile (ABM) system that is capable of providing effective defense of the U.S. homeland against limited attacks of ballistic missiles, including accidental, unauthorized launches or deliberate attacks;

(3) Demonstrate advanced technologies—as options for enhancing initial BMD systems—such as space-based defenses and their associated sensors that could provide an overlay to ground-based interceptors; and

(4) Continue programs of basic and applied research to develop follow-on technologies for both near-term and future technology insertion options and new system options to sustain a highly effective missile defense capability.

(b) The BMDP shall provide the basis for informed decisions regarding development, production, and deployment milestones, and shall be carried out in full consultation and, where appropriate, with participation of our allies. The program shall be conducted in compliance with all existing international agreements and treaty obligations and shall utilize nonnuclear weapon technologies to achieve the deployments in paragraphs (a)(1) and (a)(2) of this section. The BMDP shall focus on the development, acquisition, and integration of theater missile defenses and strategic defenses against ballistic missile threats to the United States.