La guerre nucléaire limitée : un renouveau stratégique américain

Over the past few years, a debate on possible scenarios of limited nuclear weapons use has surfaced again in the United States. Russian nuclear saber-rattling since 2014 and the growing tensions in the Korean peninsula have led Washington to reassess its own ability to deter, or respond to, such a limited use of nuclear weapons.

This issue, which is rooted in the history of the Cold War and the requirements of extended deterrence, has led the Obama administration to face both old and deep dilemmas: trying to conciliate the need for restraint during a crisis or a war with the uniquely devastating potential of nuclear weapons. The Obama administration, after having initially put forward an agenda in favor of nuclear disarmament, found itself forced to think of and plan possible forms of limited nuclear war, in a context of generalized strengthening of its deterrence posture. The international context, the state of American nuclear forces as well as the ideological and strategic preferences of the Trump administration seem to indicate that this shift towards a more robust and flexible posture will carry on, and might even accelerate in the next several years.
This content is available in French: La guerre nucléaire limitée : un renouveau stratégique américain.
Available in:
Regions and themes
ISBN / ISSN
Share
Related centers and programs
Discover our other research centers and programsFind out more
Discover all our analysesDesign, Destroy, Dominate. The Mass Drone Warfare as a Potential Military Revolution
The widespread use of drones observed in Ukraine—both in terms of the scale of the fleets deployed and their omnipresence in the operations of both belligerents—appears to meet the conditions of a genuine military revolution.
The Hunt for Economic Security: The Role of Navies in Deterring Threats to the Maritime Economy
The maritime domain is currently faced with a wide variety of threats, such as climate change, economic warfare, shadow fleet operations, protection of critical infrastructures, and illicit activities ranging from illegal fishing to piracy. Navies suffer from inherent limitations when deterring threats to the global maritime economy: their global presence and permanence limits their credibility in terms of deterrence, their focus usually set on immediate deterrence, implementing deterrence by punishment in and from the naval domain is difficult and costly.
A Fragile Consensus? The Pressure on the Norm Against Nuclear Testing
Apart from North Korea, no state has conducted explosive nuclear tests in the 21st century, reflecting the emergence of a strong international norm against such testing.
The Franco-German Brigade and the Revival of European Defense
One thing has been clear since Donald Trump's return to the White House: the very existence of the European unification project is threatened. Unless it develops a sovereign defense policy to counter the war in Ukraine and the weakening of American security guarantees, the European Union will continue to see its internal cohesion and external attractiveness wane.