Acting U.S. Air Force Secretary Gary Ashworth said the United States will continue to modernize its nuclear forces, including developing a new intercontinental ballistic missile, the Sentinel.
He said at a U.S. congressional hearing: “Defending the motherland is the top priority of the U.S. Air Force. We will achieve this goal by continuing to modernize our nuclear forces , especially through the Sentinel project, the B-21 (stealth bomber – Editor’s Note) project and the Long Range Standoff (LRSO, Long Range Weapon System – Editor’s Note) project, as well as the command, control and communication systems that support nuclear forces.”
Previously, the Pentagon admitted that the cost of the Sentinel project was 81% higher than the initial assessment, reaching $141 billion. The main reason was attributed to the construction of ground infrastructure: building silos, laying cables, and building new facilities. This also affected its service time – it is now beyond the previously planned time frame of 2029.
