The B-2 is a multi-role bomber capable of delivering both conventional and nuclear ammunition.

The B-2 is a multi-role bomber capable of delivering both conventional and nuclear ammunition. Staff Sgt. Bennie J. Davis III/U.S. Air Force

Don’t Let the Pentagon Monopolize Nuclear Policy

Expert voices from State and Energy must be brought into the Trump administration’s nascent Nuclear Posture Review.

The Trump Administration has commenced a top-to-bottom review of American nuclear policy, a process that will include reexamining President Obama’s commitment to pursuing a world free of nuclear weapons. This undertaking, the Nuclear Posture Review (NPR), will be the bureaucratic means by which Trump’s nuclear tweets — such as the declaration that the United States must “greatly strengthen and expand its nuclear capability” — are turned into official policy (or not).

This review comes at a critical time in America’s history as an atomic power. The United States retains about 4,000 nuclear warheads in service, with another 2,800 awaiting dismantlement. Decades of deferred modernization have allowed the nuclear enterprise to age: some long-range bombers are more than 60 years old, certain command-and-control systems still run on floppy disks, and some intercontinental ballistic missile silos have fallen into disrepair. While upgrades are clearly necessary, experts debate the proper scope of modernization, especially given estimates that it could cost a trillion dollars, crowding out other budgetary priorities. These tough strategic and financial decisions come as the United States and its allies also face growing nuclear threats, with China and Russia modernizing their own nuclear forces, and North Korea racing toward the capability to launch a nuclear strike against the American homeland. 

The American people thus deserve a comprehensive review of nuclear weapons policy because, when it comes to national security decision-making, process determines substance. Unfortunately, the process emerging from the Trump Administration — which is still working to establish a regular order for national-security decision-making — appears to be restricted to a small group within the Defense Department, potentially diminishing critical voices from other government agencies. Given the magnitude of the decisions that hinge on the integrity of the NPR and the need for a truly strategic nuclear weapons vision, the administration must reach beyond the Pentagon’s walls, particularly to the State and Energy Departments.

Presidents Obama, Bush, and Clinton all conducted NPRs to establish their administration’s approach to the world’s most deadly weapons. Such reviews cover a wide range of issues, from the risks of nuclear proliferation and the security of nuclear materials from theft by non-state actors, to the size of the American arsenal and the deterrence umbrella it extends over allies. Past reviews have produced major policy changes, such as Obama’s mandate for a diminution of the role of nuclear weapons in U.S. national security strategy, Bush’s selective repudiation of arms control agreements, and Clinton’s endorsement of dramatic post-Cold War nuclear reductions. These reviews are closely watched overseas, as American allies and adversaries seek to understand how they will be affected by a new administration’s plans.

Given the far-reaching implications of nuclear policy changes for U.S. grand strategy, especially the credibility of alliance commitments, the State Department has a vital role to play in any NPR. It is U.S. diplomats who will bear responsibility for explaining the Trump Administration’s view of extended deterrence to allies overseas — like Japan, South Korea, and the member-states of NATO — whose national security is backstopped by American nuclear security guarantees. The State Department also plays a leading role in nonproliferation policy, including by representing American interests at the United Nations Security Council, and oversees arms control negotiations as well as the verification and compliance of existing agreements. The primary organ of U.S. foreign policy certainly merits a significant voice in the NPR.

The Department of Energy also has a vital role in the U.S. nuclear enterprise, and participates alongside the Defense Department in the Nuclear Weapons Council. The National Nuclear Security Administration, a semiautonomous agency within the Department, is charged with ensuring the health of nuclear warheads, supporting nonproliferation efforts overseas, and countering nuclear terrorism. In service of that mission, NNSA manages the United States’ eight nuclear labs and sites, such as Los Alamos National Laboratory and the Y-12 National Security Complex. When an administration certifies to Congress that the U.S. nuclear stockpile is safe, secure, and effective, both the Defense and Energy secretaries must sign off.

Pentagon leaders may argue that the lack of sub-Cabinet political appointees at the Departments of State and Energy prevent those agencies from meaningfully participating in the NPR. This contention does not stand up to scrutiny. Both agencies have secretaries in place and highly experienced career officials capable of supporting their principals’ contributions to the process. In the case of the Energy Department, Obama appointee Frank Klotz retains his job as Undersecretary for Nuclear Security and NNSA Administrator. While Defense is historically charged with leading the review, it does not have a monopoly on nuclear expertise.

With the range of strategic and budgetary challenges affecting American nuclear policy, President Trump was correct to prioritize an NPR in one of his early executive orders. But especially since this administration’s review represents one of the last opportunities to shape the coming multi-decade nuclear modernization program, the American people deserve an inclusive and exhaustive process that reaches beyond the Pentagon. The Congressional armed services committees should press Secretary Mattis on the details of the emerging process and demand a thorough and inclusive review. Moreover, members should insist that they, as well as the relevant appropriators, are consulted as the NPR proceeds. Congress must act quickly, while the process is still in its early stages, as the Pentagon intends to sprint through the review in the next six months. 

When the Obama administration debuted its review in 2010, Secretary of State Clinton, Energy Secretary Chu, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Mullen all joined Defense Secretary Gates on the podium. Even if the Trump Administration’s review reaches different conclusions, it would do well to broadly emulate the collaborative standard set by its predecessor.

X
This website uses cookies to enhance user experience and to analyze performance and traffic on our website. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners. Learn More / Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Accept Cookies
X
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.

Allow All Cookies

Manage Consent Preferences

Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link

If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.

Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.

Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.

If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.

Save Settings
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Cookie List

A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:

Strictly Necessary Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Functional Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Performance Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Social Media Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Targeting Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.