U.S. commander: nuclear war with Russia a 'real possibility'

The head of U.S. Strategic Command STRATCOM, which is responsible for the U.S. nuclear deterrent, is calling for military and federal leaders to reimagine methods of deterring aggressive action from rivals such as China and Russia, including the "real possibility" of nuclear war.

STRATCOM Commander Adm. Charles Richard warned that China and Russia have "begun to aggressively challenge international norms" in "ways not seen since the height of the Cold War." Richard cited a rise in cyberattacks and "threats in space," as well as their investment in advanced arms such as nuclear weapons.

"There is a real possibility that a regional crisis with Russia or China could escalate quickly to a conflict involving nuclear weapons, if they perceived a conventional loss would threaten the regime or state," Richard wrote in the February issue of "Proceedings," the U.S. Naval Institute’s monthly magazine. "Consequently, the U.S. military must shift its principal assumption from "nuclear employment is not possible" to "nuclear employment is a very real possibility," and act to meet and deter that reality."

"We cannot approach nuclear deterrence the same way. It must be tailored and evolved for the dynamic environment we face," Fox News cited him as saying.

Richard argued that recent actions by both countries would "increase the risk of great power crisis or conflict" if "left unchecked" by U.S. officials. The STRATCOM commander noted Russia was "aggressively modernizing" its nuclear arsenal and China is "also on a trajectory to be a strategic peer" and should not be mistaken as a "lesser included" case."