A North Korean nuclear attack on US interests would mean the “end” of Kim Jong-un’s regime, the Pentagon warned in its new defense strategy released Thursday.
“Any nuclear attack by North Korea on the United States, or its allies and partners, is unacceptable and would lead to the end of that regime. There is no scenario where the Kim regime can use nuclear weapons and survive,” the ministry said. of Foreign Affairs. Defense warned US Defense in the document.
The United States has said it believes its nuclear weapons are designed to deter “all forms of strategic attacks,” including those involving conventional weapons, the Pentagon warned.
“This includes nuclear employment at any scale and includes powerful strikes of a strategic nature, using non-nuclear means,” said a defense official.
China is still the biggest threat to the US, even with the war in Ukraine
The Pentagon believes that China remains the biggest security challenge for the United States, even with the war in Ukraine, and so it will determine how the US military is equipped and formed in the future.
This assessment is part of a new Pentagon defense strategy, in a document released this Thursday in Washington that stresses, however, that a conflict with China is “neither inevitable nor desirable.”
The document describes an effort to prevent “Beijing’s dominance in key regions”, an implicit reference to the aggressive military build-up in the South China Sea and heightened pressure on the island of Taiwan.
At the same time, the 80-page, unclassified report highlights the Russian war in Ukraine and states that Moscow poses a serious threat to the US and its allies, with nuclear weapons, cyber operations and long-range missiles.
The Pentagon warns that as China and Russia continue to grow as partners, “they now pose more dangerous security challenges, even as terrorist threats persist.”
A senior defense official, who spoke to some accredited Pentagon journalists on condition of anonymity before the report was released, said the document indicates the US is facing two major nuclear-armed competitors, Russia and the United States, for the first time. China.
The previous strategy, released in 2018 by then-President Donald Trump, reflected the fundamental shift from a US military focused on fighting extremists to one that was preparing for war with a major power.
The 2022 defense strategy increases the focus on allies as an important part of US defense, and underscores the broader effort of President Joe Biden’s administration to rebuild relations with partner countries fragmented by Trump.
At the heart of the new document is the concept of “integrated deterrence,” meaning the U.S. will use a broad combination of military might, economic and diplomatic pressure, and strong alliances — including the U.S. nuclear arsenal — to deter an enemy. scared of attacks.
It concludes that China remains “the most consistent strategic competitor for decades to come”, while Russia remains an “acute” threat.
This is the first strategy since the US ended its 20-year war in Afghanistan and withdrew all troops last year.
The Pentagon has also released a nuclear stance assessment, which highlights the increasing risks of nuclear danger, especially as China-Russia relations grow.
Defense strategy revisions are required by Congress every four years, and lawmakers have already received a more classified version.
Source: DN
