While Trump Talks Tough, US Quietly Cutting Nuclear Force

While Trump Talks Tough, US Quietly Cutting Nuclear Force

This January 2014 photo shows a mockup of a Minuteman 3 nuclear missile used for training at F. E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyo. (AP Photo/Robert Burns)

Associated Press | 19 Mar 2017 | by Robert Burns

http://www.military.com/daily-news/2017/03/19/while-trump-talks-tough-us-quietly-cutting-nuclear-force.html

The Air Force is quietly shrinking its deployed force of land-based nuclear missiles as part of a holdover Obama administration plan to comply with an arms control treaty with Russia. The reductions are nearing completion despite President Donald Trump's argument that the treaty gives Moscow an unfair advantage in nuclear firepower.

The reduction to 400 missiles from 450 is the first for the intercontinental ballistic missile, or ICBM, force in a decade -- when the arsenal came down from 500 such weapons. The Air Force says the latest cut in Minuteman 3 missiles will be completed in April, leaving the deployed ICBM arsenal at its smallest size since the early 1960s.

In 2014, President Barack Obama's administration announced the planned ICBM reduction to tailor the overall nuclear force, including bombers and nuclear-armed submarines, to the New START accord that the U.S. and Russia sealed in 2010. Both nations must comply with the treaty's limits by February 2018.

The shrinking of the ICBM force runs counter, at least rhetorically, to Trump's belief that the U.S. has fallen behind Russia in nuclear muscle. In December, he tweeted that the U.S. must "greatly strengthen and expand its nuclear capability until such time as the world comes to its senses regarding nukes." He has criticized New START as a bad deal.

It's unclear how Trump intends to conduct a nuclear expansion, which critics call unnecessary and a potential drain on funds needed for non-nuclear forces. A long-term plan to replace and modernize the current nuclear force is already underway and will end up costing hundreds of billions of dollars.

As of March 14, the Air Force had 406 Minuteman missiles in launch-ready silos, Maj. Daniel Dubois, an Air Force spokesman, said Friday. In September the number was 417. Dubois said the number will be down to 400 by April. Also as part of the treaty's compliance process, the Air Force in January finished converting 41 B-52H bombers to non-nuclear status.

Michaela Dodge, a defense policy analyst at the conservative Heritage Foundation think tank, says the U.S. should get out of New START.

"There should be a way to reverse those decreases," she said, referring to the 50 Minuteman missiles pulled out of their silos. "As long as Russia continues to increase the number of its nuclear warheads under New START, we should not be decreasing."

Russia's warheads have surpassed the treaty limit of 1,550, and the U.S. is below the limit. But by next February, neither is expected to be above.

Daryl Kimball, executive director of the Arms Control Association, said Moscow would honor its New START commitment.

"It's important for the United States to stay on schedule," he said, arguing that such efforts "will help ensure that Russia does the same."

Based on military calculations, Obama declared in 2013 that the U.S. could safely reduce its nuclear force by one-third from New START levels. But negotiations to do so never took place. They seem even unlikelier after Russia's military actions in Ukraine and Kremlin rhetoric that U.S. officials have considered reckless and dangerous. However, Trump's suggestions of interest in a grand bargain with Russia, including nuclear reductions, could provide an avenue for fresh talks.

After taking office, Trump ordered a review of nuclear forces, a Pentagon-led process likely to take a year or more. Among the key questions: whether to continue Obama's weapons modernization plan and a possible withdrawal from New START. One element of the modernization plan calls for a new-generation ICBM force that could cost more than $100 billion.

Sticking with New START would not necessarily constrain the U.S. for long. It expires in February 2021 unless both sides agree on an extension. Besides the overall warhead limit, the treaty allows each side a maximum of 700 deployed launchers, including missile silos. Russia and the United States can decide for themselves how their totals are apportioned among the three weapons categories: ICBMs, submarines and bombers.

The 50 underground silos from which the Minuteman missiles are being removed will be kept "warm," meaning capable of returning to active use. The missiles are being put in storage. Those decisions came after members of Congress from the ICBM base states -- North Dakota, Wyoming and Montana -- pushed for no elimination of silos.

The 400 remaining deployed ICBMs would be the fewest since 1962, according to a history of the force written by Hans Kristensen of the Federation of American Scientists.

Air Force

John A. Gordon was a general for the U.S. Air Force, an administrator for the National Nuclear Security Administration, is a lifetime director for the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank), and a member of the Markle Task Force on National Security in the Information Age.

Note: Open Society Foundations was a funder for the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank), and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank).       

George Soros is the founder & chairman for the Open Society Foundations, a friend of Michael Douglas, and was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society. 

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Aspen Institute (think tank), the Brookings Institution (think tank), and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank).

Michael Douglas is a friend of George Soros, and a director at the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank).

Margaret A. Hamburg was a VP for the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank), and is a member of the Markle Task Force on National Security in the Information Age.

Morton H. Halperin is a member of the Markle Task Force on National Security in the Information Age, and a senior adviser for the Open Society Foundations.

Eugene Habiger is a director at the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank), and was a general for the U.S. Air Force.

Igor S. Ivanov is a director at the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank), a director at the United Nations Foundation, and was the minister of foreign affairs for Russia.

Ted Turner is the chairman for the United Nations Foundation, and a co-chairman for the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank).

Charles B. Curtis was the EVP & COO for the United Nations Foundation, the president & COO for the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank), and an undersecretary for the

 U.S. Department of Energy.

Neile L. Miller was a budget director for the U.S. Department of Energy, and an acting administrator for the National Nuclear Security Administration.

Robert L. Smolen was a deputy administrator for the National Nuclear Security Administration, and a major general for the U.S. Air Force.

National Nuclear Security Administration is a division of the U.S. Department of Energy.

Peter B. Lyons is an assistant secretary for the U.S. Department of Energy, and was a commissioner for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

William D. Magwood IV was a director, Office of Nuclear Energy, director of electric utility research & nuclear policy programs for the U.S. Department of Energy, and a

Commissioner for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

William A. Anders was the chairman for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and the chairman & CEO for the General Dynamics Corporation.

General Dynamics Corporation is the producer of components for Nuclear weapons, and a contributor to the Center for a New American Security.

Center for a New American Security was a contributor to the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. Army, the U.S. Coast Guard, the U.S. Department of Defense, the U.S. Marine Corps, and the U.S. Navy, and BAE Systems plc.

William A. Osborn is a director at the General Dynamics Corporation, and a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago.

Lester Crown was a director at the General Dynamics Corporation, a lifetime trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank), and is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago.

James S. Crown is a director at the General Dynamics Corporation, the vice chairman for the Aspen Institute (think tank), and a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago.

Thomas R. Pickering was a lifetime trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank), and a U.S. ambassador for Russia.

R. Eden Martin is the president of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and counsel at Sidley Austin LLP.

Michelle Obama was a lawyer at Sidley Austin LLP.  

Barack Obama was an intern at Sidley Austin LLP, an attorney for ACORN vs. Illinois State Board of Elections, and Madelyn Payne Dunham was his maternal grandmother.

Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) was the plaintiff in ACORN vs. Illinois State Board of Elections.

David F. Hamilton was a canvasser for the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), and is Lee H. Hamilton’s nephew.

Sidley Austin LLP was a legal adviser for the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN).

Newton N. Minow is a senior counsel at Sidley Austin LLP, and a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago.

Cyrus F. Freidheim Jr. is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Thomas R. Pickering is a distinguished fellow at the Brookings Institution (think tank), and was a U.S. ambassador for Russia.

Lee H. Hamilton is an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), David F. Hamilton’s uncle, and a director at BAE Systems Inc.         

BAE Systems Inc. is a subsidiary of BAE Systems plc.

BAE Systems plc is a producer of components for Nuclear weapons.

Vernon E. Jordan Jr. is an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), Valerie B. Jarrett’s great uncle, a senior counsel for Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, LLP, a director at the American Friends of Bilderberg (think tank), and a 2008 Bilderberg conference participant (think tank).

Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, LLP is the lobby for the Boeing Company, and the Fluor Corporation.

Boeing Company is a producer of components for Nuclear weapons.

Madelyn Payne Dunham was an aircraft inspector for the Boeing Company, and Barack Obama’s maternal grandmother.

Thomas R. Pickering was an SVP, consultant for the Boeing Company, and a U.S. ambassador for Russia.

James F. Collins was a U.S. ambassador for Russia, a senior advisor for Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, LLP, and is a senior associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank).

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank) was a funder for the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank), and the U.S. Department of Energy.

Jessica Tuchman Mathews is a director at the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank), was the president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank), a director at the American Friends of Bilderberg (think tank), an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), and a 2008 Bilderberg conference participant (think tank).

Ed Griffin’s interview with Norman Dodd in 1982

(The investigation into the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace uncovered the plans for population control by involving the United States in war)

http://www.illuminati-news.com/110106a.htm

Eugene Habiger is a director at the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank), and was a general for the U.S. Air Force.

Michael Douglas is a director at the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank), and a friend of George Soros.

Margaret A. Hamburg was a VP for the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank), and is a member of the Markle Task Force on National Security in the Information Age.

John A. Gordon is a member of the Markle Task Force on National Security in the Information Age, a lifetime director for the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank), an administrator for the National Nuclear Security Administration, and was a general for the U.S. Air Force.

Janet C. Wolfenbarger was a general for the U.S. Air Force, and is a director at the AECOM Technology Corporation.

AECOM Technology Corporation manages the Nuclear weapons test site.

Norman Y. Mineta was a director at the AECOM Technology Corporation, and a VP for the Lockheed Martin Corporation.

Lockheed Martin Corporation is a producer of components for the Nuclear weapons.

Norman R. Augustine was the chairman & CEO for the Lockheed Martin Corporation, and a director at the Center for a New American Security.

Center for a New American Security was a contributor to the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. Army, the U.S. Coast Guard, the U.S. Department of Defense, the U.S. Marine Corps, and the U.S. Navy, and BAE Systems plc.

BAE Systems plc is a producer of components for Nuclear weapons.

BAE Systems Inc. is a subsidiary of BAE Systems plc.

Lee H. Hamilton is a director at BAE Systems Inc, an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), and David F. Hamilton’s uncle.

David F. Hamilton is Lee H. Hamilton’s nephew, and was a canvasser for the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN).

Fluor Corporation is the site management for the Nuclear weapons.

Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, LLP is the lobby for the Fluor Corporation, and the Boeing Company.

James F. Collins was a senior advisor for Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, LLP, a U.S. ambassador for Russia, and is a senior associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank).

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank) was a funder for the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank), and the U.S. Department of Energy.

Robert G. Card was an undersecretary for the U.S. Department of Energy, and a director & division president for CH2M HILL.

CH2M HILL is a test site management for the Nuclear weapons.

Engility provides the analytic & advisory services for the Nuclear weapons, and was a contractor for the Iraq reconstruction.

Iraq reconstruction was a post-war rebuilding effort for Iraq.

Iraq Study Group made policy recommendations on U.S. involvement in Iraq.

Lee H. Hamilton was a co-chair for the Iraq Study Group, is a director at BAE Systems Inc., David F. Hamilton’s uncle, and a an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

BAE Systems Inc. is a subsidiary of BAE Systems plc.

BAE Systems plc is a producer of components for Nuclear weapons.

Vernon E. Jordan Jr. was a member of the Iraq Study Group, is an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), Valerie B. Jarrett’s great uncle, a senior counsel for Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, LLP, a director at the American Friends of Bilderberg (think tank), and a 2008 Bilderberg conference participant (think tank).

Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, LLP is the lobby for the Boeing Company, and the Fluor Corporation.

Boeing Company is a producer of components for Nuclear weapons.

Thomas R. Pickering was an SVP, consultant for the Boeing Company, and a U.S. ambassador for Russia.

James F. Collins was a U.S. ambassador for Russia, a senior advisor for Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, LLP, and is a senior associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank).

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank) was a funder for the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank), and the U.S. Department of Energy.

Jessica Tuchman Mathews is a director at the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank), was the president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank), a director at the American Friends of Bilderberg (think tank), an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), and a 2008 Bilderberg conference participant (think tank).

Ed Griffin’s interview with Norman Dodd in 1982

(The investigation into the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace uncovered the plans for population control by involving the United States in war)

http://www.illuminati-news.com/110106a.htm

Eugene Habiger is a director at the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank), and was a general for the U.S. Air Force.

Craig Brotchie was a colonel in the U.S. Air Force, and married to Ann E. Dunwoody.

Ann E. Dunwoody is married to Craig Brotchie, a member of the Belizean Grove, and was a 4-star general in the U.S. Army.

Carolyn S. Chin is a member of the Belizean Grove, and was a director at the CH2M HILL.

CH2M HILL is a test site management for the Nuclear weapons.