Gerrard Kaonga
When it comes to the US getting into a nuclear conflict, the nation isn’t as secure as people may think, according to this video.
Fears around another world war have been around since the conclusion of the second world war, so this isn’t anything new.
But the biggest fear tied to a possible World War III is the likely use of nuclear weapons.
In case you somehow aren’t aware, the nuclear missiles that nations like the US, China and Russia have are considerably more powerful than those used in WW2.
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A new simulation video from the Infographics Show YouTube page has broken down what would happen in the first 20 minutes of a nuclear attack in the US as well as the many places that could be decimated.
The video first broke down potential targets into two specific categories, counterforce and countervalue.
Counterforce targeting isn’t about striking cities and killing as many people as possible but rather taking out the enemies ability to fight back.
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Whereas countervalue targets are locations that are meant to reduce the enemies ability to recover or pose a threat in the future.
So, when it comes to the first 20 minutes, an enemy would likely target five locations scattered around the US and they are pretty big.
This would be the Pacific Coast, the Great Plains, the South, The Midwest and The northern eastern seaboard...So, yeah, that doesn’t really leave much of the US that isn’t a point of interest for an attack.
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This is because each of these five regions contain multiple counterforce and countervalue targets.
While the exact actions of the first 20 minutes are difficult to predict, the video suggests that a strike on the US would first go for The Great Plains.
This is due to the multiple missile silos, across the heartland of America. As the missile silos are spaced roughly over 1.5 miles apart, a single nuclear missile couldn’t take out more than one at a time, meaning multiple would have to be fired to prevent the US from counter striking.
The next target could be the Pacific Coast due to both its military, economical, and cultural importance.
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A strike along the coast could destabilize two of the US’ most important ports, the Los Angelos Port and Long Beach Port.
It can also target tech companies which have become important both for technology and economics.
The Midwest has fewer military targets of value, but it could still be target due the many countervalue targets due to the many large cities and strong industry.
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Chicago is a city that could prove particular valuable due its worth as a financial and transportation of hub.
The South also holds financial and transportation value but is home to many military installations, making it a great target if the goal is to make the country’s war-fighting ability mute.
The south also holds critical infrastructure and refineries, disturbing this could cause a massive gasoline shortage and could even tank the American economy.
The north east holds the bulk of the federal government, in Washington DC, making it a prime target in hopes of destabilizing the country.
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The Pentagon, also a hub of information, communication, planning and execution of US military strategy would also be a key target.
Not to mention the largest naval base in the US, in Norfolk, Virginia, would also be a key area to help prevent the US from striking back,
As well as this, an attack on New York City, one of the famous cities in the world could prove to be a massive countervalue target to capitulate Americans and demoralize the nation.