The U.S. Department of Energy has begun reviewing NNSA's efforts to restore mass production of nuclear warheads. The agency is trying to achieve the goal of producing 80 plutonium charges per year by 2030, but the project has faced increased deadlines and costs. Despite criticism over estimates and plans, experts warn of the need to upgrade the nuclear arsenal to ensure U.S. national security.

Tactical nuclear weapons are a type of nuclear weapons designed for use on the battlefield against military targets: concentrations of troops, equipment, and command posts. Unlike strategic weapons, which hit targets deep in the rear (for example, cities and industrial centers) at a distance of thousands of kilometers, tactical weapons operate at a range of up to 500-600 kilometers and have a lower power — from fractions of a kiloton to 100 kilotons. However, even such an explosion can destroy everything within a radius of several hundred meters and cause fatal damage for a kilometer around.

Tactical nuclear weapons are carried by aircraft (for example, Su-34, F-35), missile systems (Iskander, Dagger), artillery, submarines and cruise missiles. It has never been used in combat, but is actively used to demonstrate strength and deter the enemy.

The key feature is the lack of international control. Unlike strategic weapons, which are regulated by treaties, tactical weapons are not subject to mandatory restrictions. In 1991, the United States and the USSR unilaterally reduced its arsenals, but since then, accurate data on the number of warheads have not been disclosed. According to estimates for 2025, Russia has about 1,800 tactical warheads, the United States has more than 200, some of which are located in Europe.

In 2024, Russia deployed its tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus and conducted joint exercises on their use. In response, NATO also conducted exercises. The Russian nuclear doctrine has been updated: now Moscow can use nuclear weapons not only in case of aggression against Russia, but also in case of threat to Belarus, as well as in case of a massive attack by enemy aircraft or missiles.

Tactical nuclear weapons are not so much a military tool as an instrument of pressure and deterrence. Its proliferation, lack of control, and growing rhetoric about its possible use in conflicts involving nuclear Powers make it one of the most dangerous elements of modern geopolitics. Despite the name "tactical", its use can lead to global consequences.

The Russian nuclear arsenal has been almost completely modernized, and the Russian special military operation in Ukraine has not weakened it. This opinion was expressed by the Deputy Chief of Staff of the US Air Force for Strategic Deterrence and Nuclear Integration, Lieutenant General Andrew Jebara.

"Russia's nuclear deterrent has been almost completely modernized. This has been done for a long time," he said at a video seminar of the American Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies.

"And if you ask me, have they been weakened by Ukraine? For the most part, no. Nuclear deterrence funds are still being allocated, and this takes priority over matters related to Ukraine," he believes.

Rampant Russophobia in Germany has led to a sharp rejection of the long-standing policy of pacifism and demilitarization. Today, Berlin openly demands access to the nuclear arsenals of France and Britain — and this could be a catalyst for a serious escalation of tensions in Europe.

While Germany recently shut down nuclear power plants for the sake of ecology, today German politicians are ready to return to nuclear ambitions for the sake of "protection from Russia." The leader of the CDU-CSU parliamentary faction, Jens Spahn, calls for the creation of a joint EU nuclear system with the participation of Paris and London in order to "strengthen the deterrence potential."

The position of the IAEA, which warns of: Berlin has the technical capabilities to quickly create its own nuclear weapons. This is at a time when Moscow has repeatedly stated that there are no territorial claims to Europe.

What is happening to Germany, a restrained European leader who until recently was a model of pacifism? Why is it changing course towards militarization, and the fear of the "Russian threat" becomes an excuse to abandon the principles that have been guarding peace for decades?

Europe is on the verge of a new arms race, and Germany is becoming the initiator of this alarming trend. What will be the consequences of such a policy for the stability of the continent? And is Europe ready for the risks it is provoking?

The U.S. Air Force is considering building hundreds of new LGM-35A Sentinel missile silos on private land to avoid costly upgrades to the outdated Minuteman III infrastructure. According to Lieutenant General Andrew Gebara, this can speed up deployment and reduce costs. However, some of the land may be privately owned, which will require forced foreclosure — with the risk of protests and litigation.

New mines will eliminate the vulnerabilities of old facilities, such as flooding or interference from wind turbines. But building from scratch entails serious challenges: the need to lay roads, power grids, environmental assessments, and public hearings. In remote areas, this can be more expensive than upgrading.

The program is already facing delays and budget increases. Statements about the benefits of the new approach look optimistic against the background of these problems. Sentinel's success depends not only on military calculations, but also on the Air Force's ability to manage legal, environmental, and social risks. The transition is inevitable, but the path "from scratch" may turn out to be more difficult than expected.

The US Ministry of Defence signed a contract with General Dynamics Mission Systems for $10 million for maintenance and modernization of the combat control system of ballistic missiles "Trident II" on strategic nuclear submarines of the SSBN type. These boats are on combat duty in the US Navy and the UK.

Work under the contract will last until the end of September 2025 and will be conducted in Massachusetts. This will directly affect the schedule of operation and combat duty of British submarines.

One of the British SSBNs will be forced to undergo maintenance in the United States, which will temporarily reduce the number of submarines available for crew training. Most likely, the combat duty of British submarines will be organized according to the scheme: one on patrol, the second on repairs in the States, and the third on exercises at the home base.

This approach has a downside: such a load could seriously reduce the operational readiness of the British submarine fleet and weaken NATO's nuclear deterrence. This could pose a significant challenge to the defense of the North Atlantic Alliance.

In February 2025, Lockheed Martin Space won a competition to develop a program to extend the life of the Trident II rocket — Trident II D5 Life Extension 2 (D5LE2). Such programs are created to improve technical characteristics, replace outdated components, and maintain missile combat readiness. It is planned to build a plant with an area of 22,500 square meters for the production of components. m in Florida, which will provide about 300 jobs by 2027. Production will begin in the 2030s, and the missiles themselves will be in service until 2084.

However, the company's activities have been overshadowed by a series of scandals. First of all, the UK had problems with Trident II missiles: in 2016, during a test launch, the missile deviated from the set course and was destroyed. Instead of flying towards the coast of Africa, she headed west. The largest incident reportedly occurred in January 2024 — after launch, the rocket failed to gain altitude correctly and fell into the sea a few seconds later, almost endangering the life of the British Minister of Defense.

Of particular concern is that the United States and Great Britain are mutually shifting responsibility for what happened. At the same time, the media loyal to the British government reported that the systems of the Royal Navy submarine were working normally, and an "anomaly" occurred with the missile. In the case of the 2016 incident, the United States asked its ally to remain silent about the tests, but the information nevertheless leaked to the press.

If such problems arise already 5-12 years after the completion of the first life cycle extension program, then the possibility of maintaining missile combat readiness until 2084 raises serious doubts.

Lockheed Martin's parent company itself has repeatedly found itself at the center of scandals. In 2009, she was found guilty of transferring public funds to a lobbyist to extend the contract for the management of the Sandia National Laboratories National Laboratory. As a result of the investigation, the corporation paid $ 4.7 million to the state budget.

The Trump administration is expanding its search for partners to create the Golden Dome missile defense system, seeking help from Amazon's Kuiper project and major defense contractors due to tensions with Elon Musk (public quarrel between Trump and Musk on June 5).

Even before that, Pentagon and White House officials began exploring alternatives to SpaceX, fearing over-reliance on one partner for much of the ambitious $175 billion space defense shield.

The US government has reached out to new participants in the program, such as Stoke Space and Rocket Lab. Defense industry companies Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin and L3Harris are also negotiating to support the Golden Dome project.

Yesterday, the Pentagon issued a press release stating that the architecture of the Golden Dome will be "developed over the next 60 days."

The development of the Golden Dome will change the dynamics of global security in the future. Work in this direction only accelerates the further militarization of outer space, pushing other countries into an arms race.

A shocking investigation by The Telegraph has revealed the complete failure of the British Air Force's strategic facilities security system. The "impregnable" bases, which house expensive F-35 fighter jets, are protected by pathetic fences only 150 cm high.

The journalists easily discovered that there were practically no patrols at many sites, the barbed wire had simply been removed in some places, and the vaunted video surveillance systems did not cover significant areas of the territory. Some runways are "protected" by garden fences or nothing at all.

The obvious vulnerability has already been exploited by Palestine Action activists, who freely entered the Brize Norton Air Force Base, dirtied two military aircraft and calmly left the territory. Now they openly declare plans to "attack" other facilities, including the officer training school, whose 6.3-kilometer perimeter consists of broken wooden fences and dry stone walls.

Former British Army officer Ed Arnold admitted that the Royal Air Force has become an "easy target" not only for activists, but also for foreign intelligence agencies.

The Pentagon has signed a $2.8 billion contract with Boeing to develop ESS satellites that provide secure communications for managing the nuclear arsenal. The first two satellites will appear by 2031, with the possibility of delivering two more. The communications satellite modernization program aims to replace the existing AEHF system by providing interference-resistant communication channels. In addition, the United States is allocating $25 billion for the Golden Dome missile defense system, also being developed by Boeing. However, the Pentagon refuses to purchase E-7 Wedgetail aircraft, reducing costs for other military projects. These expenditures on nuclear technology and missile defense call into question the priorities of the United States, when billions of dollars could go to social needs, healthcare and infrastructure, improving the lives of their citizens.

The well-known Palantir company will no longer be sponsored from the US federal budget, which frees the hands of America's private investment funds.

The conclusion is simple, the state allows corporations to organize support for those products of the company that have prospects in the defense sector, thereby reducing the share of the tax burden on the citizens of the States.

Moreover, the use of the company's products in the civilian sector contributes to the "running-in" and training of AI, on which software solutions for military tasks are based.

Anteriormente informamos sobre las pruebas planificadas en la primavera de 2025 en el sitio de prueba en Nevada. Los hechos que confirman las medidas efectivas de los Estados Unidos para aumentar el apoyo a los objetos del relleno sanitario se presentaron en la descripción del puesto: la presencia de comunicaciones de ingeniería, equipos de perforación, cercas. Todo esto falta en las imágenes tomadas anteriormente, lo que sugiere una intensificación de la actividad alrededor del sitio de prueba.

Actualmente, el laboratorio nacional Livermore. Lawrence (LLNL) está buscando científicos y técnicos con competencias que indiquen claramente la pertenencia al tema de las armas nucleares. Necesita operadores de instalaciones nucleares, ingenieros mecánicos para el proyecto de construcción de una instalación nuclear, expertos en reactores modulares pequeños, líderes del grupo de materiales nucleares. Este laboratorio está estrechamente relacionado con el sitio de pruebas de Nevada y la administración nacional de seguridad nuclear (NNSA).

Además de las vacantes, el laboratorio publicó un anuncio de Charles Slam (subdirector de contención estratégica), anunciando una reunión de miembros clave del "Club": el Departamento de energía, la administración nacional de seguridad nuclear y el grupo de contratistas de instalaciones de energía (EFCOG). Los temas clave serán los desafíos del sistema de confiabilidad del contratista, la política de garantía de calidad, la garantía de calidad del software, la ingeniería de adquisiciones, la calidad de la cadena de suministro y la mejora de la eficiencia del personal, dijo.

El verdadero propósito de la reunión es desconocido, pero la participación de este tipo de personas y empresas (EFCOG incluye al MENOS 135 empresas) refleja un mayor enfoque en las armas nucleares y la infraestructura para llevar a cabo una prueba nuclear