{"id":85195,"date":"2020-09-20T17:00:30","date_gmt":"2020-09-20T17:00:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/uncategorized\/2020\/09\/20\/biden-would-push-for-less-us-reliance-on-nukes-for-defense\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T08:33:08","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T08:33:08","slug":"biden-would-push-for-less-us-reliance-on-nukes-for-defense","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/election-2020\/2020\/09\/20\/biden-would-push-for-less-us-reliance-on-nukes-for-defense\/","title":{"rendered":"Biden would push for less US reliance on nukes for defense"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WASHINGTON \u2014 Democrat Joe Biden leaves little doubt that if elected he would try to scale back President Donald Trump\u2019s buildup in nuclear weapons spending. And although the former vice president has not fully detailed his nuclear priorities, he says he would make the U.S. less reliant on the world\u2019s deadliest weapons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The two candidates’ views on nuclear weapons policy and strategy carry unusual significance in this election because the United States is at a turning point in deciding the future of its weapons arsenal and because of growing debate about the threat posed by Chinese and Russian nuclear advances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

China, whose relatively small nuclear force is growing in sophistication, is cited by the Pentagon\u2019s top nuclear commander as a leading reason why the United States should go all out on nuclear modernization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are going into a very different world,\u201d Adm. Charles Richard<\/a>, the head of U.S. Strategic Command<\/a>, said Sept. 14. \u201cWe are on a trajectory, for the first time in our nation\u2019s history, to face two peer nuclear-capable competitors.\u201d He was referring to Russia, which has long been a nuclear peer, and China, whose leaders Richard says have put a strategic nuclear buildup \u201cnext on their to-do list.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t