A top US general warned today that the United States and its allies would have "no defense" against large numbers of ground-launched cruise missiles of the type recently deployed by Russia. <br/><br/>Washington has repeatedly accused Moscow of deploying a land-based cruise missile system in contravention of a 1987 US-Russia arms control deal, known as the Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF).'<br/>'<br/>General John Hyten, who heads the US military's Strategic Command, told lawmakers that a single ground-launched cruise missile is not a significant threat, but the calculus changes if multiple missiles are launched.<br/><br/>The General also warned about the growing threat to America's satellites, an essential component of its global security apparatus. <br/>'<br/>China and Russia are developing technologies to target the satellites in the event of a conflict, he said. <br/><br/>The 1987 INF treaty put an end to a mini-arms race triggered by the Soviet Union's deployment of SS-20 nuclear missiles targeting Western European capitals. <br/><br/>Russia says it has not violated the INF treaty, but has accused Washington of doing so itself.'