OPINION:
At a time of rising global instability, Congress faces a defining choice: whether to remain complacent or strengthen and accelerate modernization of America’s nuclear deterrent.
Our adversaries have been preparing, investing and testing all this while. As we near the end of the year, Congress’ top priority should be passing a National Defense Authorization Act that modernizes our deterrent. That is how we continue to ensure peace through strength.
The world we live in today is the most dangerous since the end of World War II. China is accelerating its military buildup across the Indo-Pacific. Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine continues. North Korea has become increasingly provocative with its missile tests. Iran seeks to develop its own nuclear weapons. Together, these four regimes form an axis of aggression united in their desire to undermine American leadership and the free world.
That reality makes modernizing our nuclear deterrent not a matter of choice but of survival. This year’s NDAA rises to this challenge, with key provisions that will ensure our deterrent remains credible, effective and relevant. My focus remains on swiftly delivering a strong, unified NDAA to the president’s desk before the end of the year.
As chair of the Senate Armed Services strategic forces subcommittee, I worked to secure several critical measures in the Senate version of the NDAA. This includes upgrading the National Nuclear Security Administration’s aging infrastructure and refocusing the Nuclear Weapons Council to better oversee nuclear weapons and delivery systems. It requires the deployment of at least 400 intercontinental ballistic missiles across no fewer than 450 launch facilities — the bedrock of our deterrent.
It authorizes more than $3.8 billion for the Sentinel ICBM program and requires a sustainment strategy for our aging Minuteman III ICBMs, which must remain capable for years to come.
In addition to the land-based leg of our nuclear triad, this bill boosts the triad’s sea and air legs. It accelerates the nuclear-armed sea-launched cruise missile program, bolstering our long-neglected regional nuclear deterrence options. The NDAA directs the Air Force to submit a comprehensive bomber road map and lines up the schedule for when the new stealth bomber will be formally cleared to operate with the AGM-181 cruise missile.
It also supports the new Survivable Air Operations Center aircraft, from which the president will be able to command, control and communicate with our nuclear forces under any circumstance.
These investments send a clear message to our adversaries: America’s nuclear deterrent is ready and formidable. In the face of overwhelming force, they will continue to think twice and conclude: “Not today.”
Critics may argue that nuclear modernization is costly, but the far greater cost would be failing to deter aggression and allowing hostile powers to gamble that American defenses are insufficient or unreliable. A strong nuclear deterrent is the ultimate insurance policy — the guarantee that no adversary can risk attacking the United States or its allies without catastrophic consequences.
Beyond the technical details, this bill speaks to a larger truth. Our adversaries are working together to weaken America. We cannot afford to respond with hesitation or half measures. Nor can we afford to continue to delay the modernization of these capabilities. This year’s NDAA ensures that our forces remain second to none, that our nuclear deterrent can pace any threat, and that peace is preserved through strength.
Congress must enact these provisions in the fiscal year 2026 NDAA. The stakes are too high for delay. At this critical moment, we owe it to the American people and to future generations to ensure that the arsenal of democracy remains ready, reliable and strong.
• Deb Fischer, a Republican, is the senior U.S. senator from Nebraska. She is a senior member of the Senate Armed Services Committee and chairs its subcommittee on strategic forces. She represents Offutt Air Force Base near Omaha, Nebraska, home to the U.S. Strategic Command, which integrates and coordinates the necessary command and control capability to provide support with the most accurate and timely information for the executive branch and other combatant commanders.
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