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US to attempt terror-free nukes

trident.jpgThe New York Times today has an interesting story about the likely outcome of the United States government’s review of its nuclear posture. According to the Times, “thwarting nuclear-armed terrorists” will become the new central aim of the government’s nuclear establishment.

This marks a pretty radical departure from previous nuclear postures, most notably that of President George W. Bush. The Bush-era review was completed in 2002 by then Secretary of Defense and administration poet-laureate Donald Rumsfeld. It reduced America’s nuclear arsenal while simultaneously seeking to develop new nukes that could strike at deeply buried and terrorist targets. Many criticised the Bush Administration policies, which they feared might increase the likelihood that nukes could be used to counter a September 11-style conventional attack on American soil.

Assuming the Times is right, the Obama plan is also centred around the terrorist threat, but in a very different way. Rather than focusing on nuclear retaliation, the new posture focuses on preventing terrorists from getting a hold of nuclear weapons from the US, its allies or anywhere else. It also will try and limit the potential fallout (literally, in this case) from a radiological bomb.

It’s an interesting new direction with some interesting implications. At one point the article mentions the need for “a safe, secure and effective nuclear arsenal,” which could be read as a coded endorsement for the Reliable Replacement Warhead, a controversial concept for a new warhead design based on old concepts that would be built without testing. It also probably means more money for things like research into nuclear attribution (so that any material used in a terrorist attack could be traced to its origins), and non-proliferation. Finally it seems as though the new posture might involve more money for satellite surveillance and intelligence assets in places like Pakistan, whose nuclear arsenal has recently raised concerns in the West.

Lockheed Martin

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    Oliver said:

    I rather like the way the byline and the picture credit are swapped around on this…

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