I have been blogging a lot recently about nuclear weapons and nuclear war. After the end of the Cold War in 1991 with the collapse of the Soviet Union, it was hoped that nuclear disarmament would proceed and humanity could remove the dark cloud of nuclear war for its future. Unfortunately, although nuclear weapons have been reduced by about eighty percent in the U.S. and Russia, each still has thousands of warheads ready to launch. In addition, other countries have nuclear weapons and are in conflicts with their neighbors that could escalate. Since Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine, relations between Russia and the U.S. have deteriorated. Both countries are upgrading their nuclear arsenals. In addition, both are working on new nuclear weapons. Today I will talk about a new U.S. weapon.
The U.S. has been working on a new nuclear bomb recently for its nuclear arsenal. The bomb is known as the B61-12. It's yield can be adjusted between a low of equivalent to 300 tons of TNT to a high equivalent to fifty thousand tons of TNT. Even the maximum yield is very small compared to the megaton warheads of our major nuclear missiles. It is very accurate and can land within a hundred feet of its target. Unlike purely gravity-guided bombs, there is a tail assembly on the B61-12 which allows it to be guided after it is dropped from an airplane. This means that it could be used to reliably destroy a target that would have required a much bigger but less accurate bomb. It can be carried by the new generation of F-35 fighter jets.
Critics of the new bomb say that the increased accuracy increases the possibility that it will actually be used in a conflict. A retired U.S. general pointed out recently that the list of possible targets for a gravity guided nuclear bomb is expanded with the B61-12. This increases the scenarios which might employ nuclear bombs delivered by airplanes. When fully tested, it will be integrated into existing NATO forces and the new F-35 fighters to expand the alliances tactical nuclear weapons in Europe.
The Russian President has bragged that Russia could defeat NATO because it has more tactical nuclear weapons. If NATO ground troops were overwhelming Russian ground troops, the Russians could use their tactical nuclear weapons to turn the tide. The deployment of the B61-12s in Europe could be an answer to the Russian tactical nuclear challenge.
In 2010, the Obama administration announced that "it would not make any nuclear weapons with new capabilities." The White House and the Pentagon claim that the B61-12 is not a violation of that pledge. However, some military experts point out that the creation of a variable yield highly accurate nuclear bomb that can be carried by a stealth fighter like the F-35 certain does add new capabilities to the U.S. nuclear arsenal.
Much of the criticism of the B61-12 program is based on the cost. When full production begins in 2020, it is estimated that the cost of from four hundred to five hundred of the new bombs will exceed eleven billion dollars. This would make the B61-12 more expensive than any other nuclear bomb ever constructed by the U.S. Perhaps the money could be better spent than wasted on a tactical nuclear weapon that will further destabilize the nuclear balance between the U.S. and Russia.
B61-12: