Strategic competition with China: in the US decided to return marine nuclear missiles

The Navy of the country, despite the preliminary abolition of these missiles, declared the desire to receive them again and renew their funding to strengthen the restraint and the possibility of recurrence against the background of increased tensions in the Indo-Pacific and long-term strategic competition with China.

US lawmakers have begun discussing the capabilities and benefits of a nuclear maritime winged maritime rocket (SLCM-N), which was first proposed during the first Trump administration in 2018. After a nuclear policy (NPR) inspection 2022, President Joe Biden then canceled this program. The US Navy official told legislators that the SLCM-N missile would be one of the three main priorities of military service. The rocket can be launched from Virginia's high -speed submarines (SSN).

Vice Admiral Johnny Wolf, Director of the Strategic Navy Strategic Systems Programs, said the Strategic Forces of the Committee of the Armed Forces of the House of Representatives that the issues still need consideration. According to Wolfe, special attention is paid to the development that the development does not affect the implementation of combat missions of the underwater fleet.

The deployment of SLCM-N, according to Vice Admiral, will provide the President of the United States with a guaranteed opportunity to strike a second nuclear stroke in conflict, strengthen restraints in high-risk regions and give allies confidence in US nuclear guarantees.

The development of SLCM-N will cover the missile system, fire control, starting system, platform integration and integration of the combat unit, as well as the development of appropriate auxiliary equipment, telemetry, flight testing equipment, coastal infrastructure and training materials. The US Navy is already cooperating with the USA Strategic Command and the Indo-Pacific Command (PACOM) over the final coordination of the concept of operations and ensuring its use with Virginia boats.

The program requires investment - $ 2 billion for development and an additional $ 400 million for nuclear warhead. They are included in the current defense bill for $ 150 billion. The US Navy first launched a winged TLAM-N maritime-n nuclear rocket in the mid-1980s. In 1991, then President George Bush Sr. ordered the withdrawal tactical nuclear weapons from foreign bases, as well as to remove all marine tactical nuclear weapons from surface ships, submarines and naval aircraft.

During the Barack's presidency, the Obama system was officially decommissioned in 2013. During the first term of Donald Trump's presidential position, his administration tried to cancel this decision and provide the United States with a "non -patient regional presence". The SLCM-N project involves the creation of a rocket with an accelerator, a winged block and a launched container that are compatible with the modular Virginia Payload Tubes (VPT) and Virginia Payload Modules (VPM).