Tactical Nuclear Weapons and NATO.pdf - Program on Strategic ...

Russia’s anticipated spending of $70 billion over the
next decade, the author pointed to investments in new
mobile, solid-fueled missiles of the Lars class <strong>and</strong> in
naval strategic nuclear systems, especially development
of the Bulava solid-fueled missile <strong>and</strong> the Lainer
liquid-fueled, heavy missile, <strong>and</strong> construction of eight
Borei class ship submersible ballistic nuclear submarines
(SSBNs). The author further noted the long-range
development of the Russian PAK DA nuclear-capable
bomber, <strong>and</strong> a major investment in nuclear-capable,
short-range Isk<strong>and</strong>er missiles, which will number 10
brigades by 2020. 9
Recent articles have explored other aspects of this
new nuclear arms race. On November 1, 2011, Lenta.
Ru addressed the reasons for the British report, placing
it in the context of defense austerity <strong>and</strong> the rising
costs of maintaining Britain’s own triad of nuclear
forces. The article examined the six major conclusions
contained in Kearn’s paper: first, the trend toward
reduction in nuclear arsenals, which began in the
1980s, has stopped <strong>and</strong> members of the nuclear club
are now increasing their arsenals; second, long-term
modernization programs are leading to a new nuclear
arms race; third, all the states that have strategic nuclear
arms see these as the necessary <strong>and</strong> vital means
to achieve national security; fourth, the programs of
other nuclear powers are driving the modernization
programs of others such as Russia, with U.S. ballistic
missile defense <strong>and</strong> conventional global strike systems
pushing Russian nuclear modernization; fifth,
the greater attention given to non-strategic nuclear
forces by states with weaker conventional forces is a
means of compensation for such weakness; <strong>and</strong> sixth,
START III was a significant diplomatic achievement
by the United States <strong>and</strong> Russia, but it did not resolve
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