Trump taking tougher stance on Russia nuclear threat
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WASHINGTON - The Trump administration on Friday announced it will continue much of the Obama administration's nuclear weapons policy, but take a more aggressive stance toward Russia. It said Russia must be convinced it would face "unacceptably dire costs" if it were to threaten even a limited nuclear attack in Europe.
The sweeping review of US nuclear policy does not call for any net increase in strategic nuclear weapons -- a position that stands in contrast to President Donald Trump's statement, in a tweet shortly before he took office, that the US "must greatly strengthen and expand its nuclear capability until such time as the world comes to its senses regarding nukes." In his State of the Union address Tuesday, he made no mention of expansion, though he said the arsenal must deter acts of aggression.
A 74-page report summarizing the review's findings calls North Korea a "clear and grave threat" to the US and its allies. It asserts that any North Korean nuclear attack against the US or its allies will result in "the end of that regime."
It also cast China as a potential nuclear adversary, saying the US arsenal is tailored to "prevent Beijing from mistakenly concluding" that it could gain advantage by using its nuclear weapons in Asia, or that "any use of nuclear weapons, however limited, is acceptable."
