Endless nukes

At a time when all three major nuclear powers are upgrading their nuclear arsenals, when Russian leader Vladimir Putin has threatened that there are circumstances in which he would consider using such weapons in Ukraine, and when the one remaining US-Russian nuclear arms control agreement is hanging by a thread, the last thing the world needs is an accelerated nuclear arms race.

But someone forgot to tell the Heritage Foundation, which just issued a report that, if implemented, would spark a nuclear competition that would rival the worst days of the Cold War.

The Heritage report summarizes its proposed nuclear buildup as follows: These expansions will include a larger ballistic missile submarine (SSBN) force, additional warheads on America’s ground-based strategic deterrent, and a modest road-mobile variant of the ground-based strategic deterrent. In the immediate term, the United States will upload non-strategic nuclear warheads from the ready reserve stockpile to existing theater capabilities.

Beyond its jargon-laced call for more nuclear weapons, the Heritage report makes the jaw dropping claim that its proposal to expand most elements of the US nuclear force is just a “modest” increase. Indeed, the document suggests that its proposal to deploy more nuclear weapons of more types on land and sea should be the first step toward an even larger buildup that will have to wait until there are enough new nuclear production facilities available.

Nukes without end, anyone? The stated rationale for this dangerous buildup is that the nuclear landscape has changed dramatically in recent years, most notably due to the possibility of facing not one but two nuclear rivals with comparable arsenals – Russia, and now China. But it’s not obvious that an unrestrained buildup is the best way to address this challenge, should it actually materialize. The Heritage report asserts that its proposals are meant to prevent rather than spark a nuclear conflict. But it doubles down on the current nuclear “triad” of land, air, and sea-based nuclear weapons – a destabilizing posture that makes a nuclear conflict more likely.

In particular, as experts from former defense secretary William Perry to the late Daniel Ellsberg have pointed out, keeping the land-based element of the triad – intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) – increases nuclear risks. That’s because possessing land-based missiles means that a president would have to decide whether to launch them in a matter of minutes upon warning of an attack, thereby increasing the possibility of an accidental nuclear war triggered by a false alarm.

Instead of proposing to eliminate ICBMs, the Heritage report suggests making them mobile, an idea that was proposed by the Reagan administration in the 1980s and referred to as the “MX missile”– later, and apparently without irony, called the “Peacekeeper.” The idea of mobile basing was ultimately abandoned due to a combination of technical challenges and opposition by ranchers.

Excerpted: ‘The Heritage Foundation Proposes Nukes Without End’. Courtesy: Commondreams.org