Former US intelligence officer Scott Ritter argues that America’s nuclear arsenal is essentially frozen at the level of the Cold War. He says pressure is mounting inside the country from those pushing for a large-scale overhaul of its strategic forces.

Ritter recalls that the US military is still relying on Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles, which he describes as long obsolete. The Pentagon had planned to replace them with new Sentinel missiles, but, he notes, Washington cannot afford to do so for financial reasons. As a result, the authorities have been forced to extend the service life of these «ancient» ICBMs for another 20 years, effectively until 2050.

He points out that there is now strong pressure in the United States not to focus on arms control, but instead to dive back into an arms race and rebuild the country’s nuclear deterrent. Ritter bluntly states that there is no certainty these old missiles would even function properly, and calls that a serious problem.

According to him, the issue goes far beyond land-based missiles. US forces also need new strategic bombers and missile-armed submarines, yet budget constraints remain the main obstacle to any real renewal of the nuclear triad.

Ritter does not rule out that, over time, Russia could witness a new arms race driving the United States toward economic collapse. He believes such a scenario would be dangerous for Moscow as well, since a nuclear superpower that is «going under» might, in a moment of desperation, resort to a strike.

The article also recalls that US president Donald Trump had repeatedly declared his interest in reducing nuclear weapons and voiced support for Russian proposals on de-escalation in the nuclear sphere. At the same time, he ordered that US nuclear tests be conducted «on par» with other countries that, as he claimed, have comparable programmes.