Aged U.S. Nuclear Stockpile and Infrastructure Must Evolve to Address 21st-Century Threats
May 9, 2018
Michaela Dodge
Summary
The U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile has changed dramatically throughout the course of its existence. From a handful of nuclear weapons of relatively simple design throughout the second half of the 1940s to a peak number of 31,255 warheads in the 1970s, the variety and capabilities of warheads in the U.S. nuclear stockpile have differed throughout the past half century. Today, the U.S. nuclear warhead stockpile is the least diverse it has been for decades, and the technical skills supporting it are in a dire need of reinvigoration. The current U.S. nuclear arsenal has been adjusted based on assumptions that are now demonstrably wrong, for example that Russia will be friendly to the United States and its allies. The future remains dangerous and uncertain, which places a premium on the flexibility and resilience of the U.S. nuclear enterprise as a whole. The U.S. approach to its stockpile must evolve so it can continue to fulfill its deterrence and assurance roles. U.S. and allied security depend on the strength of the U.S. nuclear stockpile and the skills and infrastructure necessary to support it.
https://www.heritage.org/defense/report/aged-us-nuclear-stockpile-and-infrastructure-must-evolve-address-21st-century
