Sergey Andreev
How many missiles do Russia and the United States have?
Several years ago, experts in nuclear weapons calculated that 15.5 thousand bombs, equal in power to the famous Tsar Bomb, would be enough to completely destroy the planet. In 2021, American scientists calculated that nine countries have 13.1 thousand warheads. The USA (5550) and Russia (6257) account for a significant part of nuclear weapons. The nuclear potential of other states is much more modest – it is hundreds of times smaller and theoretically cannot lead the world to a global catastrophe.
It is known that a US nuclear strike on Russia will trigger a response long before the first nuclear warhead falls on Russian territory. At the same time, of the total number of nuclear weapons in constant combat readiness, Russia and the United States have approximately the same number of charges – 1900 and 1700, respectively. But how will a nuclear war between the two countries actually unfold?
US nuclear weapons
Former analysts of the General Staff and officers of the Strategic Missile Forces in reserve note that the list of American missilemen contains information on 1100 targets around the world. If the map of potential nuclear strikes is to be believed, Russia has at least a hundred attacks with ammunition of various yields. However, the United States will not strike with one missile with a nuclear charge of 100-200 kilotons. According to the Prompt Global Strike (PGS) plan , the attack on Russian territory will take place not only with the help of ballistic missilesMinuteman III from mainland America. Almost the entire US nuclear arsenal will be used – from ballistic missiles of Trident II D5 submarines to nuclear weapons stationed in Europe. In a few minutes flight from the borders of Russia, according to various estimates, there can be from 200 to 300 ammunition of various power, including bombs and missiles of increased power of 500 kilotons or more.
The launch range of these missiles (when suppressing the air defense of the western and central regions) may be sufficient to destroy objects up to the cities of the Volga region. To destroy several hundred military targets and a dozen cities (along with ship docks, military bases and ballistic missile silos), the United States may need from two to 2.2 thousand warheads. Why so much? Because a nuclear war requires participants to hedge their risks. Simply put, not one charge will be applied to each target, but five or more at once.
Former employee of the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the USSR, Lieutenant Colonel of the Reserve Boris Konyukhov noted that both the Americans and the Russian military are putting such a quantity of ammunition into the mechanics of a nuclear strike, after which the enemy will definitely not be able to respond.
Everyone’s goals are roughly the same. In the late 70s, the military doctrine assumed only a retaliatory nuclear strike or a strike after the start of a full-scale war with the crossing of the border. At that time, the USSR’s nuclear arsenal, as far as I remember, was supposed to be twice the American one. But a lot of time has passed, serious documents have been signed limiting nuclear potentials. But the targets on the missile cards, despite the relaxation of relations, do not change.
Boris Konyukhov
How many people will die from a US nuclear strike?
It will be useful to recall another circumstance: the United States needs to destroy not only all Russian nuclear charges and ballistic missiles in which they are installed, but also all airfields, ports, large defense areas, for example, in the north of the country, in the Arctic or in Kamchatka. After the US has dealt its blow, it is time to assess the damage. Part of the American aviation will be destroyed by return fire, some ballistic missiles will be intercepted by the anti-missile defense system.
However, more than half of the missiles, even with an optimistic interception scenario, can reach their targets, and several tens of millions of people, especially in large cities, will die almost instantly, and the country will move to the Metro universe, where the survivors are trying to survive in complete devastation.
How many nuclear missiles does Russia have?
According to the former Strategic Missile Forces officers, whose tasks included planning a Russian nuclear strike, inevitable retaliation awaits the United States 10 minutes after the use of nuclear weapons against Russia is confirmed. That is exactly how much time, according to the captain of the 3rd rank of the Russian Navy in reserve, Andrei Plekhanov, it will take for a retaliatory strike, the submarines of the Russian Navy in the northern latitudes and the Atlantic Ocean will become the spearhead.
When launched from a mine, the rocket flies to the United States in about 20 minutes. Now, probably even less. And from a submarine – about 10 minutes. If a submarine with a nuclear weapon is located somewhere in the Sargasso Sea, then it is not difficult to shoot a dozen Bulava missiles. 10 of these missiles, depending on the configuration, is about 100 warheads, that is, only one submarine can destroy a hundred targets
In addition, the high density of the US population, concentrated mainly on two coasts, simplifies the task for the Russian military: it is enough to hit several large cities and the number of victims will be measured in tens of millions of people. At the same time, the Russian military does not have the task of hitting large cities with a population of over one million, it just coincided that a lot of civilians live around the largest military bases in Norfolk, San Diego, missile defense position areas in California and in other parts of the United States. The approximate estimate of civilian casualties in America after a Russian nuclear strike is about 65 million people.
At a time when the R-36M Voevoda rocket, which in the West is called Satan, was on alert, the question of the existence of the United States could be resolved in a few minutes and with extremely limited forces – one rocket was enough to wipe out all the military objects in three states of the East Coast at once, and six such missiles could completely deprive the United States of the ability to fight in the next 100-200 years.
How many missiles does the US need to destroy Russia?
The exact number of nuclear charges required to destroy a potential enemy in World War III has not been disclosed. However, it is known that within the framework of the “rapid global strike” program, the United States can use up to half of its nuclear arsenal, which by the beginning of the 40s should be transferred to air carriers. If we conditionally divide the American nuclear arsenal according to this principle at least in two, then it turns out that to destroy all targets on Russian territory, the Americans will need about 2,500 warheads and, probably, two waves of attack.
But the Americans will be able to pull off such a trick only if Russia’s nuclear forces are destroyed by the first wave and in the first minutes of a nuclear missile attack. This scenario is considered impossible, since Russian satellites and the missile attack warning system detect the launch of the missile even at the moment when the officers on duty are just turning the starting keys.
Courtesy: (life.ru)
