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Trends in U.S. Nuclear Policy ProliferationProliferation PapersPapers Trends in U.S. Nuclear Policy In collaboration with the Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) William C. Potter Spring 2005 Security Studies Department Ifri is a research center and a forum for debate on the major international political and economic issues. Headed by Thierry de Montbrial since its founding in 1979, Ifri is a non-profit organization. The opinions expressed in this text are the responsibility of the author alone. L’Ifri est, en France, le principal centre indépendant de recherche, d’information et de débat sur les grandes questions internationales. Créé en 1979 par Thierry de Montbrial, l’Ifri est une association reconnue d’utilité publique (loi de 1901). Il n’est soumis à aucune tutelle administrative, définit librement ses activités et publie régulièrement ses travaux. Les opinions exprimées dans ce texte n’engagent que la responsabilité des auteurs. All rights reserved- Ifri, 2005 - www.ifri.org Institut français des relations internationales 27 rue de la Procession - 75740 Paris Cedex 15 - France Tél. : 33 (0)1 40 61 60 00 - Fax: 33 (0)1 40 61 60 60 Spring 2005 Trends in U.S. Nuclear Policy William C. Potter Proliferation Papers Though it has long been a concern for security experts, proliferation has truly become an important political issue over the last decade, marked simultaneously by the nuclearization of South Asia, the strengthening of international regimes (TNP, CW, MTCR) and the discovery of fraud and trafficking, the number and gravity of which have surprised observers and analysts alike (Iraq in 1991, North Korea, Libyan and Iranian programs or the A. Q. Khan networks today). To further the debate on complex issues that involve technical, regional, and strategic aspects, Ifri’s Security Studies Department organizes each year, in collaboration with the Atomic Energy Commission (Commissariat à l’énergie atomique, CEA), a series of closed seminars dealing with WMD proliferation, disarmament, and non-proliferation. Generally held in English these seminars take the form of a presentation by an international expert. The Proliferation Papers is a collection, in the original version, of selected texts from these presentations. The following text is based on a presentation given by William C. Potter at Ifri on March,15th, 2005. Dr. William C. Potter is Institute Professor and Director of the Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Monterey Institute of International Studies (MIIS). He also directs the MIIS Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies. He is the author of Nuclear Profiles of the Soviet Successor States (1993), Soviet Decisionmaking for Chernobyl: An Analysis of System Performance and Policy Change (1990), and Nuclear Power and Nonproliferation: An Interdisciplinary Perspective (1982), co-author of The Four Faces of Nuclear Terrorism (2004), and Tactical Nuclear Weapons: Options for Control (2000). Text established by Marc Hecker Contents Introduction.........................................................................................................5 Declaratory Policy...............................................................................................7 Nuclear Arms Control Policy............................................................................11 Targeting and Employment Policy ..................................................................15 Force Modernization and R&D .......................................................................17 Conclusions and Recommendations ................................................................21 Introduction want to emphasize at the outset what will probably become clear in this I paper: (1) I do not regard myself as a specialist on U.S. defense policy other than how it relates to nuclear nonproliferation and nuclear terrorism issues; and (2) I am neither very sympathetic to nor closely associated with the architects of recent U.S. policy. In light of these caveats, please don’t be surprised if I tend to dwell on those aspects of U.S. policy I know best. That being said, it seems essential to distinguish clearly among a number of dimensions on nuclear policy. In particular, it is important to differentiate among: • Declaratory policy, which may or may not correspond closely with • Arms control and nonproliferation policy, which also should but does not always appear to be highly correlated with either • Targeting and Employment policy and/or • R&D policy. - 5 - Declaratory Policy s is well known, in early 2002 the U.S. Department of Defense released to A Congress the findings of its Nuclear Posture Review (NPR). This review was mandated by Congress, which called for a “comprehensive review” of the policy, strategy, plans, stockpile, and infrastructure for U.S. nuclear forces. The primary rationale for the NPR was the perceived need to recalibrate U.S. nuclear posture in light of the changed post-Cold War security environment, and especially the significantly altered U.S.-Russian strategic relationship. The 2002 NPR, which was the first major review since 1994, emphasizes that “greater flexibility” in nuclear forces and planning was necessary in order to maintain a “credible deterrent” against adversaries “whose values and calculations of risk and of gain and loss may be very different from and more difficult to discern than those of past adversaries”.1 A central finding of the NPR was the need for a “New Triad” of: • Offensive strike systems (both nuclear and non-nuclear) • Defenses (both active and passive), and a • Revitalized defense infrastructure to provide new capabilities in a timely fashion to meet emerging threats. According to the NPR, the New Triad would reduce U.S. dependence on nuclear weapons and improve its ability to deter attack in the face of proliferating WMD capabilities in two ways: • The addition of defenses to reinforce deterrence, and • The addition of non-nuclear strike forces. To proponents of the NPR, it provided a realistic new look for tailoring U.S. nuclear forces to post-Cold War military challenges. Given favorable developments in U.S.-Russian relations, nuclear arms could be reduced. To critics, however, the NPR appeared to confirm their worst fears. The review, they cautioned, would “lead to greater reliance on nuclear weapons, an 1 See Philipp C. Bleek, “Nuclear Posture Review Leaks; Outlines, Targets, Contingencies,” Arms Control Today (April 2002), pp. 20-21. See also “Nuclear Posture Review Report,” January 8, 2002 at http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/policy/dod/npr.htm. - 7 - expansion in the set of states targeted by U.S. nuclear forces, […] and an increased likelihood of nuclear use”.2 To date, neither the full hopes nor worst fears of the proponents and critics of the NPR have been realized. A number of the more significant anticipated departures from prior practice have been moderated by bureaucratic resistance within the Pentagon and by less than artful advocacy by the Secretary of Defense on Capitol Hill. What can be said, is that conceptually a number of new principles regarding nuclear weapons use have gained currency even though there remains a considerable lag in targeting, employment policy, and R&D consistent with these principles. Revised Threat Assessment As noted earlier, one impetus for the NPR was the need to adjust the U.S. nuclear force posture to changes in the post-Cold War security environment. Changes in U.S. threat assessments relate both to specific countries of concern, as well as to broader categories of threats such as WMD terrorism and Islamic fundamentalism. With respect to country-specific threats, the Bush administration has stated repeatedly that the United States and Russia are no longer enemies. As a consequence, it argued, there was no longer a need to “plan, size or sustain its nuclear forces as though Russia presented merely a smaller version of the threat posed by the former Soviet Union.”3 Although the Russian threat has receded, the Bush administration has argued that in the future, “the United States is likely to be challenged by adversaries who possess a wide range of capabilities, including asymmetrical approaches to warfare, particularly weapons of mass destruction.”4 These adversaries, administration officials have suggested, “might threaten U.S.-allies and interests, U.S. forces protecting U.S. interests, and U.S. territory in an effort to blackmail the United States to retreat from its global commitments.”5 These adversaries could include both states such as China, Iran, North Korea, and Syria, and non-state actors or terrorists, especially those sponsored or receiving material assistance from states. Significantly, although the Bush administration has recently begun to devote more attention to the nuclear dangers posed by non-state actors, its initial intention was to define the principal nuclear proliferation threat in terms of state actions, i.e., the “axis of evil” nations: Iraq, Iran, and North Korea. Some would argue – and I would concur – that this simplistic characterization 2 Kurt Guthe, “The Nuclear Posture Review: How Is The ‘New Triad’ New?” Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, 2002, p. 1. See also Roger Speed and Michael May, “Dangerous Doctrine,” Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, March/April 2005, pp. 38-49. 3 U.S. Department of Defense. Special Briefing on the Nuclear Posture Review. News Transcript, January 9, 2002, cited by Amy F. Woolf, “U.S. Nuclear Weapons: Changes in Policy and Force Structure,” CRS Report for Congress, Congressional Research Service (Updated
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