US Likely to Deploy Tactical Nuclear Weapons with Enhanced Accuracy in Europe

Lloyd Austin, U.S. Secretary of Defense. (Photo by AP News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] Amid escalating nuclear threats from Russia surrounding the Ukraine war, the United States will deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Europe this December.

On the 27th (local time), the U.S. political media outlet Politico reported, citing U.S. diplomatic sources, that the U.S. will move up the deployment of the tactical nuclear B61-12 to NATO European bases, originally scheduled for next spring, to within this year.

Currently, under the nuclear sharing program, the U.S. has deployed 100 B61 tactical nuclear weapons at European bases including Germany and Italy.

While the destructive power is reduced compared to the nuclear bombs previously deployed in Europe, accuracy has been improved.

The air-dropped tactical nuclear weapon B61-12 can adjust its destructive power from 0.3 to 50 kilotons. Equipped with tail components, it can either drop directly from aircraft or be precisely guided to the target. In the case of guidance, the accuracy is within 30 meters.

Foreign media explained that this U.S. move is part of a program to upgrade the B61 series unguided nuclear bombs, valued at 10 billion dollars (approximately 14.3 trillion won).

The nuclear bombs to be deployed this time can be dropped not only from B-2 strategic bombers but also from smaller aircraft such as the F-35, F-15, and Tornado.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin warned on the same day regarding the possibility of Russia using nuclear weapons, stating, "We are concerned about the increasing nuclear threats in Ukraine," and added, "If nuclear weapons are used, there will be a very serious response from the international community."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.