Categories
Quick Analysis

Nuclear Deterrence In a Growing Threat Era

The U.S. Department of Defense has released an important new analysis of the nuclear threats facing America.  The New York Analysis of Policy and Government presents the full document.

NUCLEAR DETERRENCE: America’s Foundation and Backstop for National Defense

THREAT

The United States and our allies face an increasingly threatening and complex strategic environment. Russia and China are increasing the role of nuclear weapons in their strategies and have been increasing the size and sophistication of their nuclear forces. Rogue regimes like North Korea and Iran are destabilizing regions through their pursuit of nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs.

RUSSIA

The United States and our allies face an increasingly threatening and complex strategic environment. Russia and China are increasing the role of nuclear weapons in their strategies and have been increasing the size and sophistication of their nuclear forces. Rogue regimes like North Korea and Iran are destabilizing regions through their pursuit of nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs.

Russia is modernizing an active stockpile of up to 2,000 non-strategic nuclear weapons employable by ships, planes, and ground forces.

CHINA

Over the next ten years, China is expected to at least double the size of its nuclear stockpile while implementing the most rapid expansion and diversification of its nuclear arsenal in its history. China is developing, testing, and fielding new generations of land-based ballistic missiles, increasing the range of its submarine-launched ballistic missiles, and pursuing a new bomber. Further, it is expending significant resources on advanced nuclear-capable systems and hypersonic vehicles.

NORTH KOREA

North Korea continues its illicit pursuit of nuclear weapons and missile capabilities in direct violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions. It has conducted increasingly sophisticated nuclear and ICBM flight tests, which pose a threat to the U.S. homeland and our allies.

IRAN

Iran has developed and fielded a substantial arsenal of ballistic missiles that can strike targets throughout the region. These ballistic missiles are a key component of Iran’s efforts to dominate its region of the world and intimidate U.S. allies and partners. Additionally, Iran’s current attempts to launch a space vehicle could provide valuable information that would aid its effort to develop an ICBM capability.

POLICY

While the United States has taken concrete steps to reduce the role and number of nuclear weapons in our national security strategy, others have increased the number of nuclear weapons they field and have increased the role of nuclear weapons in their security strategies. Until nuclear weapons can prudently be eliminated from the world, the United States must maintain a credible nuclear force by modernizing where necessary to ensure the security of the United States, our allies, and our partners. The 2018 Nuclear Posture Review reaffirms that the United States will pursue a safe, secure, survivable, and effective nuclear deterrent while simultaneously pursuing nuclear nonproliferation and arms control efforts. The highest U.S. nuclear policy and strategy priority is to deter potential adversaries from nuclear attack of any scale. The United States would only consider employing nuclear weapons in the most extreme circumstances to defend our vital interests and those of our allies and partners.

STRATEGY

The three legs of the U.S. nuclear Triad are complementary, with each component offering unique strengths. Together, the Triad ensures the United States can effectively withstand and respond to any attack.

With 400 ICBMs, no adversary can disarm the U.S. nuclear deterrent without attacking hundreds of targets simultaneously.

A portion of the SSBN fleet and its 240 SLBMs is always on patrol, making them very difficult to find and track.

The 60 nuclear-capable bombers are a clear and visible signal of U.S. intent and resolve during a crisis, and provide the President a variety of options.

Natural Supplements that have reported positive affects in enhancement- Regardless of your age, the product that is a herbal formulation, Super viagra canada free Force P has direct effect on treating impotence. Generic version kamagra contains levitra vs cialis the same sildenafil citrate are available now. It is cheaper than other Ed treatments and obtained by millions of users around viagra sale the world. order cheap viagra amerikabulteni.com This disorder has brought in a number of different ingredients that play their specific parts in dealing with the problem of impotence.

 U.S. nuclear weapons deter nuclear and strategic non-nuclear aggression, including chemical, biological, and large-scale conventional attacks. Our nuclear posture demonstrates to any adversary that nuclear strikes will result in far greater costs than any benefits the adversary could achieve. U.S. nuclear weapons provide assurance to allies and partners that the United States is committed to their security. Extended deterrence allows allies and partners to abstain from pursuing their own nuclear weapons, thereby contributing to our nonproliferation goals. Should deterrence fail, nuclear operations would adhere to the law of armed conflict as the United States will strive to end any conflict and restore deterrence at the lowest level of damage possible. The United States will continue efforts to create a more cooperative and benign security environment, but must also hedge against prospective and unanticipated risks.

POSTURE

Most U.S. nuclear weapons delivery systems have been extended far beyond their original service lives and cannot be sustained beyond the 2025 to 2035 timeframe. Although still reliable and credible, our current delivery systems, weapons, command and control systems, and infrastructure are rapidly aging into obsolescence.

The FY 2021 Budget Request funds all critical DoD nuclear modernization, sustainment, and operational requirements, helping to ensure modern replacements will be available before the nation’s Cold War legacy systems reach the end of their extended service lives.

Delays in funding for replacement systems will adversely impact military operations and undermine the deterrence mission.

PROGRAMS

COLUMBIA-Class Ballistic Missile Submarines will replace the nearly 40-year-old OHIO-Class submarines.

Ground-Based Strategic Deterrent program will replace the nearly 60-year-old Minuteman III ICBM.

 B-21 Bomber will supplement the B-52 bomber and will have both conventional and nuclear roles.

Long-Range Standoff Missile will replace the nearly 40-year-old Air-Launched Cruise Missile with a missile capable of penetrating defended airspace.

Trident II (D5) Life Extension 2 Submarine-Launched Ballistic Missile Life Extension program extends the D5’s service life for deployment on both OHIO- and COLUMBIAClass submarines.

 Sea-Launched Cruise Missile will reintroduce a flexible, sea-based, non-strategic nuclear capability to improve U.S. capabilities for deterring limited nuclear use and assuring our allies that we will meet our extended deterrence commitments.

F-35 Dual-Capable Aircraft will replace F-15E DCA to support our allies through extended deterrence.

COST

The nation’s nuclear modernization program is affordable. The United States seeks only what it needs to maintain a credible nuclear deterrent.

DoD’s FY 2021 request for nuclear forces is roughly 4.1% of the total DoD budget, and the request to modernize these nuclear forces is about 1.7% of the total DoD budget request.

 The 2018 Nuclear Posture Review projects that the total cost to modernize, sustain, and operate U.S. nuclear forces over the next 20 years will account for about 6.4% of the Defense budget at its highest level of funding in 2029, returning to about 3% for sustainment and operations upon completion of modernization.

The National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA) FY 2021 budget request for Weapons Activities is approximately $15.6B for nuclear modernization, sustainment, and operations. NNSA is responsible for the nation’s nuclear warheads and supporting infrastructure.

Illustration: Pixabay

Categories
Quick Analysis

Taking nuclear assault seriously

The Washington Free Beacon, almost alone among significant American print media sources, reported that two nuclear-capable Russian bombers flew into the U.S. air defense zone in Alaska on April 22. That information is frightening enough.  But further information was even more worrisome.  The U.S. failed to scramble any interceptors to meet the intruders.

Russian nuclear capable craft have repeatedly flown into American air space, and Moscow’s nuclear subs have snuck into the coastlines of Sweden, Finland, and the U.S. gulf coast.

The Scandinavian nations have at least attempted to take measures against the Russian intruders. But the latest information, that no interceptors were scrambled on April 22, raises questions about whether the White House takes the challenge seriously, and whether it understands the dimensions of this clear threat to America’s survival.

They also provide 24*7 customer care http://valsonindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Policy-on-determination-of-materiality-of-events.pdf order generic cialis support to solve your queries and grievances. Medication – Prescribed and Non-Prescribed Common medications advised for most impotence patients are Sildenafil and http://valsonindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/2016-2017.pdf buy generic viagra, viagra and Vardenafil and buy generic viagra. Balanced Diet: Our body requires a mix of well-balanced vitamins and minerals to function efficiently, it is scientifically established that vitamin A, B2, B6, D, E best viagra pills and C and zinc are essential immune system boosters. Greater discount sildenafil penile firmness, longer-lasting erections and diminished premature ejaculations are all benefits from this delivery system. Recently, the Lexington Institute  described the danger:

“Nuclear war is the only foreseeable threat to America’s survival in this century, and Russia is the most plausible nation from which a large-scale nuclear attack might originate… The current U.S. strategic posture, which threatens massive retaliation to deter nuclear attack, probably cannot be sustained indefinitely. Some day, in some way, deterrence will break down. Ten nuclear warheads could collapse the U.S. electric grid. Fifty could render every major city uninhabitable. Two hundred might well spell the end of American civilization. Most of the Russian warheads are mounted on long-range ballistic missiles, and Washington currently has no plan for intercepting such weapons if they are launched in large numbers. During the Cold War, U.S. leaders made a deliberate decision to forego strategic defenses of the homeland in order to stabilize the superpower arms race. The current U.S. strategic posture, designed mainly to deter rational adversaries, cannot cope with a wide array of potential scenarios such as irrational leaders, accidental launches or breakdowns in the chain of command. To cope with the full spectrum of ballistic threats to America’s homeland, a layered defense including interceptor missiles and/or beam weapons is required. The system would be costly, but not compared with the value of assets that could be destroyed in a nuclear war. However, current plans call for spending less than one-percent of the defense budget on relevant technologies. The physics of countering large-scale nuclear attacks are daunting but doable. The logical place to begin is by expanding the current Ground-based Midcourse Defense deployed on the U.S. West Coast, which is oriented mainly to threats from North Korea but could be configured to intercept Russian warheads more effectively. Other assets already in the joint force such as the sea-based Aegis combat system could be upgraded to create a nascent layered architecture. A truly robust system would probably require a space-based layer too. If these steps are not taken, there will be no way of protecting America on the day deterrence fails.”

President Obama is well known for his vehement opposition to an adequate Pentagon budget in general—it has dropped precipitously under his watch– and to defenses against nuclear weapons in particular, whether by anti-ballistic missiles, a program he consistently seeks to de-fund, or through the maintenance of nuclear weaponry to serve as a deterrent. He allowed Moscow to gain an advantage in nuclear weapons for the first time in history, and has explored the possibility of further unilateral cuts in the American arsenal.