American nuclear forces will be required to deter growing nuclear threats posed by a combination of dangers from China, Russia and North Korea at the same time, according to a Pentagon report on the employment of nuclear weapons made public Friday.
“The United States confronts multiple nuclear competitors, with each adversary presenting unique challenges for U.S. strategists to confront, stressing strategic stability in diverse ways, and complicating deterrence challenges around the globe,” the unclassified report states.
Russia is described as an “acute” nuclear threat, while China is engaged in a largely secret expansion of its nuclear arsenal. North Korea is continuing to expand and diversify is nuclear weapons and delivery systems.
Iran also presents challenges to strategic stability while not yet possessing nuclear arms.
“Any one of these nuclear challenges would be formidable itself, but the evidence of growing collaboration and collusion between Russia, the [People’s Republic of China], the [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea] and Iran makes the situation even more challenging,” the report said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has threatened to use nuclear weapons against the West in response to its military support for Ukraine.
Russia’s nuclear modernization included building new and unique strategic weapons such as a nuclear-powered cruise missile, hypersonic strike weapons and an underwater drone armed with a megaton-class warhead.
China’s nuclear buildup has included a rapid expansion of warheads that the Pentagon estimates could reach 1,000 strong in the coming years.
North Korea has expanded its nuclear arsenal and long-range missile systems.
“There is a possibility of coordinated or opportunistic aggression by a combination of adversaries in a crisis or conflict, which requires U.S. strategists to think carefully about complex escalation dynamics and deterring multiple adversaries simultaneously, including in extended crises or conflicts,” the report said.
The new guidance on the use of U.S. nuclear weapons states that nuclear war planners must consider the united front of enemy nuclear powers.
In the past, nuclear threats were primarily focused on deterring the Soviet Union and then Russia.
For Iran, the guidance states that overwhelming non-nuclear power will be used to deter regional Iranian aggression as long as Tehran doesn’t move ahead with nuclear arms.
United Nations monitors have said Iran in recent years shortened the time needed to use its stocks of enriched uranium for building nuclear weapons.
Tehran also has conducted tests of space launchers that defense officials say could be used to deliver nuclear warheads in the future.
The U.S. nuclear policy is outlined in the Pentagon’s 2022 nuclear posture review that says as long as nuclear weapons exist, the main role for nuclear arms is to deter attacks on the U.S. or its allies.
As for a nuclear war, American weapons are meant to “enable achievement of national objectives in extreme circumstances if deterrence fails,” the report said.
The U.S. will not use or threaten the use of nuclear weapons against non-nuclear states that sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and are in compliance with the treaty.
All other states face a narrow range of contingencies for being attacked with U.S. nuclear weapons based on missiles, bombers and submarines.
The report described U.S. nuclear strategy as “tailored deterrence with flexible capabilities.”
The Biden administration early on considered adopting different nuclear strategies including a no-first-use declarative policy and also sharply reducing the role of nuclear weapons.
However, growing nuclear threats led to its continuing the decades-long policy of tailored deterrence.
The report said the U.S. military will continue to maintain a triad of weapons — land-based missiles, strategic bombers and missile submarines.
The current alert levels of nuclear forces that are ready to attack based on indicators and warning of impending enemy nuclear attacks will continue, the report said.
The Biden administration report also calls for seeking arms control agreements, risk reduction measures and strategic stability.
Arms talks with Russia were put on hold following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. China has rebuffed repeated U.S. outreach for arms talks.
North Korea also cut off discussions with the United States.
“The types of limits that the United States will consider in future negotiations will be influenced by the actions and trajectories of other nuclear-armed actors,” the report said.
• Bill Gertz can be reached at bgertz@washingtontimes.com.
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