Biden: Better Conventional Arms Will Allow Nuclear Drawdown

Plans to strengthen conventional U.S. military equipment and warheads will allow the United States to draw down its nuclear arsenal while maintaining deterrence, Vice President Joe Biden said today.

Biden outlined the Obama Administration’s nonproliferation and nuclear security plans at the National Defense University here to an audience that included National Security Advisor retired Gen. Jim Jones and Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates.

Biden noted that the Quadrennial Defense Review and the Ballistic Missile Defense Review, which Gates released two weeks ago, call for further strengthening of the military’s preeminent conventional forces with capabilities such as an adaptive missile defense shield and conventional warheads that have worldwide reach.