Follow us on social

Do we need tactical nukes on US  submarines?

Do we need tactical nukes on US submarines?

A former sailor wants Congress to deny the comeback of the 'low-yield' cruise missiles because they are redundant, and dangerous.

Analysis | Global Crises

When I walked across the brow of the U.S.S. Topeka for the last time in March 2000, it was a nuclear-powered submarine in the Los Angeles class. I served four years in the vessel’s reactor compartment as a nuclear reactor operator. At the time, the vessel did not carry any nuclear missiles.

Now, a decision to add them to the Topeka and other similar submarines risks the lives of the submariners on board and the American people.

During my service, the Navy used two types of nuclear submarines. The ballistic submarine, intended to act as a deterrent to any pre-emptive nuclear strike by another country with nuclear capabilities, and the fast attack submarine, designed to spy and gather surveillance. In 2018, the Trump administration considered retrofitting in-service fast attack submarines with nuclear weapons. Today, nuclear submarines have, once again, become a hot topic, with $25 million allocated to so-called "low-yield" sea-launched cruise missiles (SLCM-Ns) in the FY23 National Defense Authorization Act. The House passed the NDAA but the Senate, the eventual conference committee between the two, and the appropriations committees all have opportunities to help stop this. Depending on the outcome, future submariners' lives may become more imperiled.

Submarines carried nuclear devices from 1959 until 1991, when President George H. W. Bush ordered the withdrawal of all tactical nuclear-armed sea-launched cruise missiles from submarines. In 2010, the Obama administration recommended the Navy retire its nuclear cruise missiles, stating that the United States could continue to support its allies in Asia without these missiles, and the Navy completed their retirement in 2013. In 2018, the Trump administration issued its Nuclear Posture Review, focusing on eliminating perceived gaps in the U.S. nuclear arsenal and proposing the redeployment of nuclear cruise missiles on Navy submarines.

In 2022, the Biden administration sent its Nuclear Posture Review to Congress, with the cancellation of SLCM-Ns as a top priority. However, despite both Biden and Navy officials opposing the SLCM-N, other actors in Congress want to see these missiles stay.

There are numerous reasons to discontinue the use of SLCM-Ns with a primary one being its price tag. As of 2019, it was estimated that the missile program would cost $9 billion from 2019-2028. This projection does not account for production costs after 2028, nor does it factor in costs associated with integrating the missiles on ships.

Another reason is that the United States already has a wide array of non-strategic nuclear capabilities, making SLCM-Ns unnecessary. From heavy bombers equipped to carry gravity bombs, to air-launched cruise missiles, to short-range fighter jets, the allocation of funds to the development of SLCM-Ns is redundant. Additionally, funding the SLCM-N program will impact conventional Navy missions and the vital work being done on these vessels at present.

Finally, nuclear submarines pose numerous hazards to those on board. The sailors aboard these vessels face risks from high voltage electricity, high pressure air and water, and various toxic chemicals. Any major accident onboard a vessel could cause the entire crew to be lost at sea. Additionally, while nuclear-powered submarines are configured to mitigate most radiation exposure, there is still some opportunity for those on board to be exposed.

Perhaps the greatest risk of working aboard a nuclear submarine is the disastrous consequences of using a nuclear missile. The use of one nuclear weapon has exponential effects, which risk the lives of everyone across the globe. When sailors take their oaths upon entering the military, they commit to protecting their fellow citizens. However, the dangers posed by the use of SLCM-Ns run counter to this mission.

Presently, the United States military has a well-equipped stockpile of nuclear weapons. The allocation of funds to the development of SLCM-Ns, to serve as a so-called “deterrent” to an initial nuclear strike, is an unnecessary use of taxpayer money that carries large risks for the American public. Why expose future submariners, who already face many dangers, to the presence of nuclear bombs? What could the billions of dollars currently proposed for these submarines be used for instead? It is time to take SLCM-Ns off the table, and retire them for good.


The USS John Warner, a nuclear powered submarine, prepares for its christening in 2014. President H.W. Bush ordered nuclear weapons off of the Navy's subs in 1991. Source: U.S. Navy|180717-N-FB085-001 PEARL HARBOR (July 17, 2018) The crew of the Royal Australian Navy submarine HMAS Rankin (SSG 78) enters Pearl Harbor for a brief stop for personnel during the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise, July 17, 2018. Twenty-five nations, 46 ships, five submarines, about 200 aircraft and 25,000 personnel are participating in RIMPAC from June 27 to Aug. 2 in and around the Hawaiian Islands and Southern California. The world’s largest international maritime exercise, RIMPAC provides a unique training opportunity while fostering and sustaining cooperative relationships among participants critical to ensuring the safety of sea lanes and security of the world’s oceans. RIMPAC 2018 is the 26th exercise in the series that began in 1971. (U.S. Navy photo by Lt. Cmdr. Cheryl Collins/Released)
Analysis | Global Crises
Kaja Kallas
Top photo credit: Kaja Kallas, Member of the European Parliament, Patron to Creative Business Cup Estonia (Flikr

Kaja Kallas' shocking lack of historical literacy

Europe

The EU’s foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, has consistently demonstrated a reductive and simplistic approach to geopolitics that betrays a serious lack of strategic depth and historical knowledge for such a critical role. Her failure is symptomatic of a broader decline of European statecraft.

Reacting to the recent summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and the military parade in Beijing dedicated to the victory over fascism in World War II, attended by dozens of leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, Kallas expressed that it was "news" to her that China and Russia were among the victors who defeated Nazism and fascism

keep readingShow less
F-35
Top image credit: F-35A Lightning II's from the 34th Fighter Squadron at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, land at Royal Air Force Lakenheath, England, April 15, 2017. The aircraft arrival marks the first F-35A fighter training deployment to the U.S. European Command area of responsibility or any overseas location as a flying training deployment. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Matthew Plew)

F-35 is the biggest money sinkhole ever

Military Industrial Complex

A new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report has found that Lockheed Martin and Pratt & Whitney, the primary contractors working on the F-35, made product deliveries 238 days late on average in 2024 — despite the program paying them hundreds of millions in performance incentive fees, which encourage completing tasks on-time.

By comparison, the same deliveries were 61 days late on average in 2023. But even then, the contractors’ lateness was chronic, if not absolute. Lockheed Martin delivered 110 aircraft in 2024 to the program — all late.

keep readingShow less
Masoud Pezeshkian
Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian visits Iran's nuclear achievements exhibition in Tehran, Iran April 9, 2025. Iran's Presidency/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS

Iran's political factions divided over future of nuclear  program

Middle East

On August 28, the E3 (Britain, France and Germany) set the clock ticking, triggering the snapback mechanism and warning Iran that it must show meaningful progress on nuclear diplomacy within 30 days or face the return of pre-2015 U.N. sanctions.

Coming after Israel and the United States attacked Iran, hitting nuclear facilities and infrastructure and assassinating senior Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) officers and nuclear scientists, the EU’s decision has raised the stakes immeasurably.

keep readingShow less

LATEST

QIOSK

Newsletter

Subscribe now to our weekly round-up and don't miss a beat with your favorite RS contributors and reporters, as well as staff analysis, opinion, and news promoting a positive, non-partisan vision of U.S. foreign policy.