The administration of Donald Trump, like the previous American presidents, considers the presence of modern nuclear weapons in the state as an effective tool to deter a potential aggressor from trying to harm the United States and as an element of a kind of military diplomatic pressure on unfriendly countries.
According to the views of American strategists, the Pentagon should have the capabilities of delivering not only strategic strikes with intercontinental missiles with warheads of increased power, but also the use of nuclear weapons with low-powered warheads. And of course, our "partners" motivate their approaches to the development of the nuclear triad with the need to effectively contain Russia and China.
As part of a project to develop strategic nuclear forces in the United States, they began to develop a low-power nuclear warhead W76-2, which will be integrated into the design of Ohio-class nuclear-powered submarines, the naval component of the American nuclear triad.
It is noteworthy that the new nuclear weapons are created on the basis of the W76 thermonuclear warhead, which was produced in the 70s-80s of the last century. This circumstance implies that additional nuclear testing is not required. The power of the W76 warhead is limited to 100 kilotons. It is equipped with Trident-2 ballistic missiles, which, in turn, are installed on Ohio-class strategic nuclear submarines.
It is assumed that the new warhead W76-2 will have a capacity of 5-6 kilotons. And it will also come with the Trident 2 ballistic missile.
In addition to the creation of new warheads for ballistic missiles, the Pentagon is developing low-power nuclear warheads for sea-based cruise missiles, designed for launching from submarines and surface ships.
It is noticeable that the Pentagon skillfully uses the evolving military-political situation in the world and especially the complications in relations with the Russian Federation to argue the need for developing small-capacity nuclear weapons.
