The Pentagon's new National Defense Strategy rejects restrictions on the use of nuclear weapons long advocated by arms control advocates and, in the past, President Joe Biden himself, Bloomberg reproted.

Citing the growing threats from China and Russia, the Defense Department said that by the 2030s, the United States will face two major nuclear powers as strategic rivals and potential adversaries for the first time in its history. In response, the U.S. will maintain a very high bar for the use of nuclear weapons, not ruling out the use of weapons in response to a non-nuclear strategic threat to U.S. forces abroad or to allies.

Biden said during his 2020 presidential campaign that the U.S. nuclear arsenal should only be used to deter or retaliate in the event of a nuclear attack, a position blessed by progressive Democrats and condemned by defense hawks. Since then, the threat environment has changed dramatically, and the Pentagon's strategy has been worked out in cooperation with the White House.

The nuclear report, which is part of a broader strategy, said the Biden administration has reviewed its nuclear policy and concluded that a no first use and sole purpose policy would lead to an unacceptable level of risk in light of the range of non-nuclear capabilities being developed and deployed by competitors that could cause damage at the strategic level to the United States and its allies.

In the document, the Pentagon said Russia continues to swing its nuclear weapons in support of its revisionist security policy while its advanced arsenal is expected to grow.