https://www.commondreams.org/news/20...Kgnb91acEmL5Gc
An F/A-18E Super Hornet from the "Sidewinders" of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 86 launches from the flight deck of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) May 10, 2019 in the Red Sea. (Photo: Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Michael Singley/U.S. Navy via Getty Images)
Published on
Thursday, June 20, 2019
byCommon Dreams
Pentagon Releases, Then Deletes, Document Detailing Use of Nuclear Weapons to Restore 'Strategic Stability' for US Military
"At a time of rising nuclear tensions, casually postulating about the potential upsides of a nuclear attack is obtuse in the extreme."
byEoin Higgins, staff writer
The U.S. military appears to believe it can somehow prevail in a nuclear war, according to a Pentagon document that was briefly made public, and has plans for using atomic weapons in "small and limited" capacities in order to create "strategic stability" for itself in the world.
The document, Nuclear Operations (pdf), describes the current political and military environment and the challenges faced by the Pentagon in strategizing how to most effectively deploy nuclear weapons in war. It was first reported on by the Federation of American Scientists (FAS), which downloaded and released the document on June 19.
The Pentagon published the document on June 11 and removed it earlier this week. In a statement to The Guardian, a Defense Department official said the document was made private "because it was determined that this publication, as is with other joint staff publications, should be for official use only."
"Using nuclear weapons could create conditions for decisive results and the restoration of strategic stability," the document reads. "Specifically, the use of a nuclear weapon will fundamentally change the scope of a battle and create conditions that affect how commanders will prevail in conflict."
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