The head of the Strategic Command of the US Armed Forces (AF), Admiral Charles Richard, assessed the possibility of a nuclear war with Russia or China. He wrote about it in an article for the official publication of the United States Naval Institute.
According to him, since the collapse of the USSR, the Pentagon has not had to consider the possibility of a direct military clash with a nuclear power, but now the situation has changed.
“There is a real possibility that a regional crisis with Russia or China could quickly escalate into a conflict with the use of nuclear weapons, if, in their opinion, in the event of a defeat with the use of conventional weapons, a threat to the political system or the state arises,” Richard. He added that Washington should not rule out the possibility of using nuclear weapons by potential adversaries.
According to the admiral, Russia and China allegedly began to pursue an aggressive policy while the US Department of Defense focused on the fight against terrorism. He said that countries are challenging international norms using force “unseen since the height of the Cold War,” and urged that such actions not be left unanswered.
Richard stressed that the United States must “actively compete” in order to contain the aggression of other countries. “By yielding to their initiatives, we run the risk of reinforcing their beliefs that the United States is unwilling or unable to respond, which could further provoke them,” the American admiral concluded.
Earlier in January, scientists at Rutgers University in the United States disclosed that large-scale use of nuclear weapons during the war would lead to unprecedented climate change in the equatorial Pacific Ocean, reducing the algae population by 40 percent and cutting fish catches.