US closer to building first nuclear warhead in 20 years

The US has been carrying out its plan to build its first nuclear warheads in nearly 20 years.

The New York Times reported that a hybrid design for the new weapon will be unveiled by the interagency Nuclear Weapons Council.

It will not add to but replace the nation’s existing arsenal of aging warheads.

If this plan is approved by US President George W. Bush and financed by the Congress, it will cost over 100 billion USD.

Exploratory research for the weapon was authorized three years ago, and has been financed since. Now the costs will begin to increase.

With a generation of more reliable arms, the military could abandon holding onto huge inventories of old weapons, and reduce the American arsenal from some 6,000 warheads to 2,000 or less.

However, the new weapon called the Reliable Replacement Warhead (RRW) will combine elements of designs from two weapons laboratories in an approach that some experts argue is untested and risky, reported Xinhuanet.

Last week, a spokesman for the National Nuclear Security Administration said the government will not proceed with the RRW if it is determined that testing is needed.

Edited by T.H