Report: New Nuclear Strategy Being Formulated by the United States
A senior Pentagon official is formulating a new policy that emphasizes the use of short-range tactical nuclear weapons in the event of a conflict with another power. The goal of the new strategy is to prevent a conventional war from escalating into a nuclear conflict.
The US Department of Defense is formulating a new nuclear strategy that emphasizes the possibility of using short-range tactical nuclear weapons in the event of a regional war against China or Russia, as reported on Wednesday by NBC. The emerging plan will change the nuclear response options presented to the President of the United States during a crisis.
According to the report, the goal of the new strategy is to prevent a conventional war from escalating into a nuclear conflict and to deny any US adversary any possible advantage in the event of such a confrontation. The strategy focuses primarily on potential regional conflicts with Russia and China, which Washington views as its main nuclear rivals.
The new plan is led by Elbridge Colby, the US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Strategy and Force Development and one of the most influential figures in the Pentagon. Colby supports giving a greater role to tactical nuclear weapons, thereby deviating from the current approach, which relies primarily on long-range strategic systems designed to destroy an enemy's nuclear forces.
According to NBC, Colby planned to present his proposals on Wednesday at a closed military event in Nebraska, during a visit to US Strategic Command, the body responsible for managing the country's nuclear forces. In Colby's view, China and Russia already understand that Washington is prepared to use such weapons.
US President Donald Trump has announced over the past year and a half a change in the United States' nuclear approach. Trump stated that he had ordered the Pentagon to begin nuclear testing and that he would work to expand the American nuclear arsenal.
