The USA is building a nuclear weapon, touted to be 24 times more powerful than the bomb that dropped on Hiroshima in 1945. The new bomb is a variation of the B61 gravity bomb developed in the 1960s, during the Cold War, and was announced by the Department of Defense (DoD) last week. According to a report by Newsweek, it could kill over 300,000 Russians if it were dropped on Moscow.
The US said the B61-13 is intended to "strengthen deterrence of adversaries and assurance of allies" by providing President Joe Biden "with additional options against certain harder and large-area military targets."
In a press release, the Department of Defense said, ''The B61-13 would be deliverable by modern aircraft, strengthening deterrence of adversaries and assurance of allies and partners by providing the President with additional options against certain harder and large-area military targets. It would replace some of the B61-7s in the current nuclear stockpile and have a yield similar to the B61-7, which is higher than that of the B61-12.''
In the release, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Space Policy John Plumb added, ''The United States has a responsibility to continue to assess and field the capabilities we need to credibly deter and, if necessary, respond to strategic attacks, and assure our allies.''
Newsweek, citing a Nukemap simulation science developed by historian Alex Wellerstein, reported that the B61-13 bomb if exploded over Moscow at an estimated maximum yield of 360 kilotons of TNT would kill more than 300,000 people. The one dropped on Hiroshima had a blast yield of 15 kilotons.
According to the report, anything within a half-mile radius of the bomb's detonation site would be vaporized by a massive fireball. The blast would demolish buildings and likely kill everyone within a mile, while those within two miles of the detonation site would be dead within a month due to the high level of radiation exposure. Some 15% of survivors would die of cancer later in life. In total, injuries would number 868,860, Nukemap suggested.
The news comes as Russian President Vladimir Putin signed off on a law revoking Russia's ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. Russia said that it will not resume testing unless Washington does and that its de-ratification does not change its nuclear posture or the way it shares information about its nuclear activities.
Putin, who has repeatedly reminded the world of Russia's nuclear might since launching his invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, said no one in their right mind would use nuclear weapons against Russia.
If such an attack was detected, he said, "such a number of our missiles - hundreds, hundreds - would appear in the air that not a single enemy would have a chance of survival".
