Biden Admin Pursues Building Powerful New 'Nuclear Gravity Bomb': 'Reflective of Growing Threats'
The United States military is developing a new nuclear weapon for the nation’s arsenal.
The new B61-13 bomb will ultimately replace some of previous variants of the B61 series of nuclear bombs, according to Defense News.
The Pentagon is citing its aim to deter adversarial nuclear powers such as China or Russia from ever challenging the United States in a conflict as justification for the weapon.
“Today’s announcement is reflective of a changing security environment and growing threats from potential adversaries,” Assistant Secretary of Defense for Space Policy John Plumb said of the initiative, announced Friday.
“The United States has a responsibility to continue to assess and field the capabilities we need to credibly deter and, if necessary, respond to strategic attacks, and assure our allies.”
A facts sheet for the weapon — described as a nuclear gravity bomb — cites its potential for use against “certain harder and large-area military targets.”
B61-13 nuclear gravity bomb would provide additional options against certain harder and large-area military targets, while US will separately continue to complete and implement a comprehensive strategy for defeat of hard and deeply buried targets.https://t.co/LvZ1yaG6Oy pic.twitter.com/LofNouezZE
— Ryan Chan 陳家翹 (@ryankakiuchan) October 28, 2023
The B61-13 has a kiloton potential similar to that of some older weapons in the U.S. nuclear arsenal, such as the B61-7, according to Sandboxx News.
The fallout from the weapon would dwarf the effect produced by the 50-kiloton B61-12 bomb, according to a Federation of American Scientists map obtained by Sandboxx News.
The weapon is 24 times more powerful than the nuclear weapons dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in World War II, according to Fox News.
The new bomb is intended to be delivered via aircraft, rather than submarine launch or intercontinental ballistic missile.
The weapon won’t make the United States’ existing stockpile any larger.
“While it provides us with additional flexibility, production of the B61-13 will not increase the overall number of weapons in our nuclear stockpile,” Plumb said of the development plan in the announcement.
“The B61-13 represents a reasonable step to manage the challenges of a highly dynamic security environment.”
Pentagon officials emphasize that the weapon’s development isn’t coming in response to any specific national security event.
Russian military officials claim to be developing a nuclear-powered intercontinental cruise missile, according to the Associated Press.
China is also increasing the size of its nuclear stockpile, according to a Pentagon report reviewed by NPR.
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