{"id":43029,"date":"2023-07-02T12:28:05","date_gmt":"2023-07-02T20:28:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/?p=43029"},"modified":"2023-07-02T12:28:05","modified_gmt":"2023-07-02T20:28:05","slug":"embrace-the-nuance-of-nuclear-weapons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/2023\/07\/02\/embrace-the-nuance-of-nuclear-weapons\/","title":{"rendered":"Embrace the ‘Nuance’ of Nuclear Weapons"},"content":{"rendered":"

Reprinted from Bracing Views<\/a> with the author’s permission.<\/i><\/p>\n

I get email notices for Aether<\/em>, a professional journal for \u201cstrategic airpower & spacepower,\u201d and the lead article<\/a> on the cover caught my eye:<\/p>\n

\n

A Tactical Nuclear Mindset: Deterring with Conventional Apples and Nuclear Oranges<\/a><\/p>\n

James R. McCue, Adam Lowther, and James Davis<\/strong><\/p>\n

Comparing and contrasting low-yield theater nuclear weapons with conventional precision strike weapons leads to a nuanced conclusion that both contribute to deterrence.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Imagine that! Both nuclear and conventional weapons \u201ccontribute to deterrence.\u201d Even though they\u2019re apparently apples and oranges. Well, there\u2019s \u201cnuance\u201d for you.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Anybody want a tasty nuclear \u201corange\u201d? Fresh and juicy, and with a low yield. It may very well deter you<\/a> from eating citrus fruit for, well, forever.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not familiar with the authors of the piece. McCue is an Air Force lieutenant colonel with the Defense Threat Reduction Agency. I don\u2019t know about you, but suggesting that low-yield nukes can be used in nuanced ways heightens my sense of threat. Lowther directs strategic deterrence programs at the National Strategic Research Institute, which makes me think anew about the meaning of \u201cdeterrence.\u201d In this case, it seems to mean the willingness to use nuclear weapons against \u201cbad actors\u201d like China but especially Putin and Russia. And Davis is an Army major assigned to U.S. Central Command. It\u2019s nice to know the Army, just like the Air Force, has a strange love for nukes.<\/p>\n

In essence, the article\u2019s argument is this: Russia, China, and North Korea are \u201cinvesting\u201d in low-yield nukes while the US and other NATO allies have generally been reducing their arsenals of the same. To deter those three adversaries, the US must make new \u201cinvestments\u201d in low-yield nukes, because you never know what those foreigners are up to.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s how the authors put it in their conclusion: \u201cIn the right circumstances conventional weapons offer greater certainty of destruction than tactical nuclear weapons. The West must examine what this means for warfighting, as well as what adversaries are signaling by investing in low-yield nuclear weapons. The best solution may be the development of a state-of-the-art nuclear capability that ensures certain, prompt, proportionate, and in-kind response options. The perception of a missing rung on the American escalation ladder could prove alluring to Russia or China in a conflict.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mr. President, we must not allow<\/a> a missing rung on America\u2019s escalation ladder!<\/p>\n

Even if that \u201cmissing rung\u201d is only a \u201cperception.\u201d<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s keep that in mind if nuclear weapons start flying in Europe or Asia. We can console ourselves that at least we weren\u2019t missing a rung in our escalatory ladder as millions get blasted, burnt, and irradiated.<\/p>\n

William J. Astore is a retired lieutenant colonel (USAF). He taught history for fifteen years at military and civilian schools. He writes at Bracing Views<\/a>. <\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Reprinted from Bracing Views with the author’s permission. I get email notices for Aether, a professional journal for \u201cstrategic airpower & spacepower,\u201d and the lead article on the cover caught my eye: A Tactical Nuclear Mindset: Deterring with Conventional Apples and Nuclear Oranges James R. McCue, Adam Lowther, and James Davis Comparing and contrasting low-yield […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":290,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-43029","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"meta_box":{"disable_donate_message":"","custom_donate_message":"","subtitle":"We must not allow a missing rung on America's nuclear escalation ladder!"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43029","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/290"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43029"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43029\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":43032,"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43029\/revisions\/43032"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43029"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43029"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43029"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=43029"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}