Dave Majumdar
In recent months there has much hysteria in Washington about Russia allegedly lowering its nuclear threshold and particularly about Moscow’s arsenal of non-strategic nuclear weapons.
However, there is little evidence that Moscow has lowered its nuclear threshold — nor are there concrete figures available for how many non-strategic nuclear weapons the Kremlin has in its inventory.
Non-strategic nuclear weapons
While non-strategic nuclear weapons are sometimes referred to as “tactical” nuclear weapons, the term is a misnomer. In reality there are tactical and strategic effects that a weapon can deliver. The fact is, any nuclear weapons usage inherently has strategic implications even if it was used on the battlefield as a tactical weapon. Thus, the term non-strategic nuclear weapon — or NSNW — is a much better term.
“A nuke is a nuke,” retired Lt. Gen. David Deptula, a former Air Force intelligence chief and current dean of the Mitchell Institute told The National Interest. “No such thing as a ‘tactical’ nuke. The terms ‘tactical’ and ‘strategic’ refer to outcomes or effects, not material things like aircraft or weapons.”
http://warisboring.com/despite-the-fearmongering-russia-is-actually-relying-less-on-nuclear-weapons/
