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The B61-13 gravity bomb, thirty times more powerful than that of Hiroshima, will be among the tactical nuclear weapons in the American arsenal.
The American Department of Defense announced on Friday October 27 the development of a new nuclear gravity bomb, the B61-13, a modernized variant of the traditional B61. This decision is nevertheless dependent on “authorization and approval of Congress», the American Parliament, specifies the press release from the DoD (Department of Defense) which adds that “production of the B61-13 will not increase the total number of weapons in our nuclear stockpile».
The new B61-13s would officially replace certain B61-7s which appear in the American tactical nuclear arsenal, which to date includes around 200 B61 bombs, including around a hundred deployed in Europe. The development of this new tactical nuclear weapon “reflects a changing security environment and increasing threats from potential adversaries“, affirmed Deputy Secretary of Defense, John Plumb, who observes that “The United States has a responsibility to continue to deploy the capabilities we need to credibly deter and, if necessary, respond to strategic attacks, and reassure our allies».
“Additional flexibility”
The new B61-13s would have a “superior yield» to the previous B61-12 and would be “deliverable by modern aircraft, strengthening adversary deterrence and the assurance of allies and partners by providing the President with additional options against certain more difficult and large-scale military targets», Specifies the text of the press release. “The B61-13 represents a reasonable step to manage the challenges of a highly dynamic security environment“, explained John Plumb, who evokes the “additional flexibility» of this weapon.
Until now, the B61-12 were the most modern of American nuclear bombs, more precise in particular than the previous versions of the B61 series, but also less powerful, with a charge of “only» 50 kilotons – which is already significantly more than that of Hiroshima and its 12 kt. The new B61-13 will combine the precision of the B61-12, but will have the power of the B61-7 with which they will share the same warhead of 360 kt (30 times that of Hiroshima).
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The new B61-13s might not just replace some of the older B61-7s mentioned by the “DoD“. Indeed, “This decision to build a new bomb appears to have less to do with a military need than with the conclusion of a political agreement aimed at getting rid of the last megaton weapon in the American arsenal: the B83-1. This weapon was initially planned to be retired from service under President Obama until it was resurrected by the Trump administration; it has since become a focal point in the battle between the Biden administration, which wants to remove it, and hard-liners in Congress, who want to keep it», Specify this Saturday researchers Hans Kristensen and Matt Korda in a note from the Federation of American Scientists (FAS). The B83-1 bomb, which entered service in 1983, has been the most powerful American bomb since 2015, since it exceeds one megaton (1.2 mt to be exact, or three times the future B61-13).
This decision to develop the B61-13 comes “shortly after the B61-12 began large-scale production last year and is currently entering the nuclear stockpile», Specify the two researchers, who recall that the United States planned to eventually build 480 B61-12 bombs, which were originally intended to replace all of the gravity bombs in the American nuclear arsenal.
“Political weapon”
Logically, so that the total stock does not increase, the target number of B61-12s should decrease in favor of B61-13s, the number of which should be “very limited» – «perhaps in the order of 50 weapons – to be built at the end of the B61-12 schedule, in 2025», add Hans Kristensen and Matt Korda. According to the FAS, they will only be deployed in the United States by strategic bombers – B2 and future B21 -, and not in the European countries members of the Atlantic Alliance by dual-use fighters (nuclear and conventional).
The approximately 200 American tactical atomic bombs currently in stock represent only a small part of the nuclear arsenal which mainly includes so-called strategic weapons (such as intercontinental missiles for example). The total number of United States warheads is estimated by ICAN at 5,244 in 2023. But, since the Trump administration, nuclear weapons have been expanding across the Atlantic and the Republicans, in the majority in the House of Representatives, are pressure for the movement to continue. “The B61-13 bomb will be the second ‘political’ weapon in recent memory. The first was the W76-2 low-yield warhead deployed at the end of 2019 on submarines Trident. Next could be a sea-launched nuclear cruise missile (SLCM-N), if defense hawks have their way», conclude Hans Kristensen and Matt Korda.
2023-10-28 13:18:00
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