As a result, Moscow’s arsenal of over 2,000 tactical nuclear weapons is now in the spotlight. Policymakers and experts take to the national media daily to debate the likelihood that Russia will use them against Ukraine or even NATO. Compared to a month ago, the nation is much better informed about Russia’s nuclear doctrine of "escalate-to-deescalate," by which Moscow reserves the option to use one of these low-yield, battlefield nuclear weapons during a conflict in Europe to compel the enemy to back down.
What is President Biden’s response to all this? Incredibly, he has opted to eliminate a program that would deliver a nuclear missile designed to deter Russia from exercising that very option.
If we're going to start WW III, why do this?
In 2018, the Trump administration proposed developing a nuclear-armed, sea-launched cruise missile to discourage our adversaries from using their tactical nukes. Earlier this year, Congress appropriated over $5 million for this program.
Monday the Biden administration abruptly canceled the program, offering no justification for the action.
The danger is that while Russia possesses thousands of these tactical nuclear weapons, the U.S. has only about 100 of them stationed in Europe. The disparity is even more acute in the Indo-Pacific, where China deploys hundreds of nuclear-capable missiles that can strike U.S. bases and allies in the region, and the United States deploys zero.