Date

Sep 11, 1975

Description

The flexible yield B61 was one of the elements of Secretary of Defense James Schlesinger’s plan to upgrade nuclear forces deployed in NATO Europe. This report to Secretary of State Henry Kissinger explained that the Pentagon program included both modernization and reductions of the nuclear stockpile. A reduction of 1,000 weapons (from the near 7,000 total) would be a bargaining chip in the Mutual Balance Forces Reduction negotiations. Believing that other weapons could be eliminated because they no longer served a useful purpose, the Pentagon proposed a cut of another 1,000 for Nike-Hercules, anti-submarine weapons, and high-yield ADMs.

As part of the upgrade, the Pentagon proposed deployments of “new selectable-yield” B61 bombs, replacing some of the 1,600 tactical nuclear bombs already deployed on a “less than one-to-one basis.” Lance nuclear-tipped missiles would replace the old Honest John and Sergeant missiles. Moreover, Pershing missiles and Poseidon submarine-launched ballistic missiles would take over the target assignments of old nuclear-capable F-4 fighter-bombers

As Hartman and Stern suggested, “The Allies will scrutinize our proposals very carefully” because of their ongoing concern “that the US nuclear deterrent is being decoupled from the defense of Europe.” When he learned of the proposals for cuts Kissinger was quite critical, arguing that the “the perception in Europe would be adverse if we took them out..” Some of the proposals, such as reducing bomb numbers, fell by the wayside, but plans for the new B61 went ahead.

Source

Digital National Security Archive

Document published in following posting(s):

NATO’s European Nuclear Deterrent: The B61 Bomb

Mar 28, 2022