The Joe Biden administration, before its departure, has issued a directive so that the US prepares to expand its nuclear power, in order to prevent the growing threats from China-Russia-North Korea. Trump will have options to add to all three parts of what is known as the US nuclear triad, which consists of land-launched missiles, submarine-launched missiles and warships, and bombers
Donald Trump, upon taking office and transferring to the White House, is required to resolve a number of issues and implement campaign promises, such as increasing the real income of American citizens and ending military conflicts. However, there is another “front” for Trump, for which he has indicated his intentions. This concerns China, against which the new US president is planning a trade war with the imposition of tariffs, but also open opposition to Taiwan. At the same time, Trump’s relations with Vladimir Putin are “frozen” and Kim Jong Un is considered to be militarily strengthening Russia on the front with Ukraine.
NUCLEAR DIRECTIVE
In an article in the Wall Street Journal, it is stated that the Joe Biden administration, before its departure, has issued a directive so that the US is prepared to expand its nuclear power, in order to prevent the growing threats from China-Russia-North Korea. However, it is not clear whether the Trump administration will continue with the development of nuclear weapons, as it has not yet specified its defense plans. It is worth noting the fact that Donald Trump will have the so-called “suitcase” with nuclear weapons and will be the only one who can give the order for launch, however the Secretary of Defense has a secondary role. In this particular position, Trump chose former anchor and veteran, Pete Hegseth , a decision that has caused controversy.
According to officials cited by the Wall Street Journal, the Biden administration directive, codenamed “Nuclear Weapons Employment Planning Guidelines,” comes as China is moving toward a major nuclear buildup, Russia is unresponsive to arms control talks, and North Korea is increasing its nuclear arsenal.
At the same time, the specific directive signed by Biden instructs the Pentagon to develop options to simultaneously deter aggression from China, Russia, and North Korea. The three countries cooperate on military matters, which increases the risk for Washington, the newspaper comments. Biden’s policy, according to administration officials, emphasizes the importance of developing advanced non-nuclear systems and deepening military cooperation with allies in Asia and Europe to counter potential threats. The Pentagon, however, is also preparing options to deploy more nuclear weapons if these efforts prove insufficient, given the potential for arms control setbacks and further delays in the development of the next generation of US nuclear systems.
“If current conditions continue to go in a negative direction with Russia saying no to arms control, China’s rise and North Korea’s build-up, there may be a need to increase the number of US nuclear weapons deployed in the future,” a senior Biden administration official said. “The question is whether we can meet that need in a conventional way by integrating closely with allies,” he added.
WHAT CAN THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION DO?
According to the Wall Street Journal, Donald Trump will have options from the Joe Biden administration to add to all three parts of what is known as the US nuclear triad, which consists of land-based missiles, submarine- and ship-launched missiles, and bombers. Those potential steps include adding multiple warheads to land-based Minuteman III missiles, putting more nuclear weapons on ballistic missile submarines and continuing development of a nuclear-armed cruise missile submarine. The Trump administration “will inherit some options,” said Vipin Narang, who served as the Defense Department’s top nuclear official until August. “So they can pick up where we left off and move forward,” he added.
WHAT DID HE DO IN HIS FIRST TERM?
Notably, in his first term, Donald Trump approved all of the major nuclear weapons programs taken over by the Barack Obama administration and added two new nuclear systems.
