US Strategic Command Commander Admits Russia And China Excellence In Modernizing Nuclear Weapons

Russia's SS-27 Sickle B intercontinental ballistic missile (Wikimedia Commons / Vitaly Ragulin)

JAKARTA - Top military officials from the United States (US) said that Russia and China surpassed Uncle Sam's country in modernizing nuclear weapons.

To keep pace with China's pace of modernizing, the United States is being asked to immediately invest more in nuclear defense and infrastructure. If not, the United States will lose credibility.

This was conveyed by the Commander of the US Strategic Command Admiral Charles Richard in the US Congress session, Tuesday local time.

He said Russia was aggressively engaged in the development and modernization of conventional nuclear capabilities.

"And now, roughly 80 percent is done, while we are at ground zero. It's easier to describe what they don't modernize, doesn't exist, than what they are, almost all of which they modernize," said Richard. April.

Likewise with China, which was able to modernize its nuclear capabilities so quickly, that he described it, every week something unknown about China is bound to be discovered (modernization).

Chinese ballistic missiles. (Source: nationalinterest.org)

"While China's nuclear reserves are much smaller than the nuclear arsenal of the United States and Russia, the country is undergoing an unprecedented expansion," explained Richard.

Referring to the New START agreement, Russia and the United States limit their nuclear warheads to 1,550 nuclear warheads for mobile intercontinental ballistic missiles, submarine-based ballistic missiles to heavy-bomber transported ballistic missiles. Meanwhile, China is thought to have only about 320 nuclear warheads, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

Nuclear & submarines

President Joe Biden's administration is currently reviewing their nuclear posture, as well as examining the money invested in the nuclear modernization program.

The aim of the review is to reduce the purpose of nuclear weapons in the United States' defense strategy, according to Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren.

"I agree with that goal and I don't think it's worth the very high level of spending. Every government makes strategic decisions about our power structure and modernization, and when it comes to nuclear weapons, those decisions carry tremendous weight," Warren said.

According to the 2017 US Congressional Budget Office report, the costs of operating, upgrading and modernizing the nuclear weapons program are estimated to cost US $ 1.2 trillion.

North Sea Fleet K-114 nuclear submarine Tula. (Wikimedia Commons / Russia RIA Novosti archive image # 895550 Mikhail Fomichev)

Richard described that two weeks ago his party planned to evaluate potential threats from China. However, a week later, it turned out that China had more nuclear reactors than before.

"With a reactor rapidly expanding, you now have a very large source of weapons grade plutonium available to you. That will change the upper limit of what China can choose to do, if they wish in terms of further expansion of their nuclear capabilities."

Not only that, Richard said China's nuclear division was on high alert, ready to be launched at any time, to counterattack as soon as sensors detected an incoming threat.

Meanwhile, he said Russia was operating entirely new equipment, with sufficient nuclear capabilities.

"They are in the second generation of new ballistic missile submarines. They have new ballistic missiles for that. That's quite capable. They have very impressive solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missiles," he said.

"They have new self-propelled missile launchers, increasing their bomb capability. They also have new weapons from the bomber (aircraft)," he said.

Richard warned that the current US missile defenses were "adequate". However, there is a need to take steps forward to counter the perceived threat by modernizing it.