The US has been involved in several conflicts around the world under the leadership of Joe Biden, the most recent being the war in Ukraine and the Middle East Photo: EFE/EPA/JONATHAN ERNST / POOL
The US Department of Defense announced this Monday (30) a project to modernize the military arsenal, which will include the development of a new nuclear bomb.
The announcement came amid rising tensions with Russia, which recently approved its withdrawal from the nuclear testing treaty.
According to the statement, the new weaponry is an “improvement” of the B6113 gravity nuclear bomb.
The Pentagon plans to develop a weapon 24 times more powerful than the bomb dropped on Hiroshima, Japan, during World War II. The B6113 would also be about 14 times more powerful than the bomb dropped on Nagasaki.
“Today’s announcement reflects a changing security environment and growing threats from potential adversaries,” John Plumb, assistant secretary of defense for space policy, said in the announcement.
According to him, “The United States has a responsibility to continue to build the capabilities it needs to credibly deter and, if necessary, respond to strategic attacks and maintain the security of its allies.”
Earlier this month, the American government conducted highly explosive experiments at a nuclear test site in Nevada.
According to the National Nuclear Security Administration’s deputy administrator for defense and nuclear nonproliferation, Corey Hinderstein, the goal of the experiments was “to help reduce global nuclear threats by improving the detection of underground nuclear explosive tests.”
According to the statement, the new weapon can be used with modern aircraft and is intended to provide the president with “options” to attack difficult and largescale military targets.
The Pentagon said it does not intend to expand the military arsenal, but rather to replace some equipment with more “modern” models.
The new weapons development project still needs to be approved and funded by Congress.
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