Trump administration considering developing two more 'usable' nuclear weapons

The shift could come in response to a growing military threat presented by China and Russia, according to reports

The world has eyed an increasing nuclear threat from North Korea for much of the past year (AFP/Getty)

The Trump administration is considering developing two new sea-based nuclear weapons to combat the growing threats of China and Russia, according to new Department of Defence review of its nuclear strategy.

The planned change to strategy comes at a moment of intense debate over proliferation in the world, with much of the international attention focused on North Korea’s pursuit of a nuclear deterrent.

Supporters of such a strategy change say that it is about time that the Defence Department come up with a new path forward, nearly three decades after the end of the Cold War, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal, which first noted the strategy change.

But others are concerned that the warheads — by all accounts, lighter and more agile tools of war — could lower the applicable threshold for using a nuclear warhead.

One of the weapons is a so-called “low-wield” warhead that could be used alongside American Trident missiles, which are currently stocked alongside larger nuclear weapons on submarines capable of launching ballistic missiles. That warhead could be developed in as little as two years, according to experts.

President Donald Trump hasn’t signed off on the new strategy so far, and the plans aren’t expected to be unveiled until later this month. The Department of Defence did not immediately respond to a request for comment and confirmation from The Independent.

Mr Trump has frequently spoken highly of nuclear weapons — and wondered why the US doesn’t employ the devices more frequently, according to reports.

The President has said that he would be “the last” person who would want to use nuclear weapons — and has backed that up with the dubious claim that he was openly against the Iraq War — but has said he wouldn’t take anything off the table. That has included the open statement that he hasn’t ruled out detonating a nuke in Europe, because it’s a “big place”.