***Click here for media resources. Click here for audio.***
MINOT, N.D. – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), chair of the Senate Armed Services Airland Subcommittee, highlighted the importance of modernizing the United States’ nuclear deterrence capabilities at a public town hall meeting today in Minot. Sponsored by the U.S. Air Force, the meeting provided landowners and community members with an overview of the Sentinel program and discussed the program’s projected impact on communities surrounding Minot Air Force Base (AFB).
“The reality is that for too long the United States has relied on our reputational deterrence,” said Cramer. “That is to say, people believed us because we had a reputation of having the best equipment and a willingness to use it to protect our country. Even the Minuteman III ICBMs can’t fend off the passage of time forever, and our enemies know that. If we don’t modernize the capabilities of the previous generation, we’re going to lose the greatest leverage we have that keeps the bad actors in their place and frankly prevents World War III. We wouldn’t be able to fund modernization if the taxpayers didn’t educate themselves on why a program like Sentinel protects America, and that’s why it’s so important you should spend a Tuesday night making sure it’s done right in Minot, North Dakota.”
Air Force leadership also delivered an update to attendees on the supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) being prepared to assess plans for potential property use at Air Force Bases in Montana and Wyoming while ensuring compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act. The supplemental EIS, which predominantly focuses on property surrounding Malmstrom AFB in Montana and F.E. Warren AFB in Wyoming, will address design refinements and facility siting updates since completion of the March 2023 EIS.
“A big thank you goes to General Connor and of course all of the leadership at Global Strike Command and the 91st Roughriders that are here tonight, as well as the community leaders, Task Force 21 and other leaders of this very critical endeavor,” continued Cramer.
For more than 50 years, Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) have been a crucial component of the United States’ nuclear arsenal. There are 400 Minuteman III missiles located across three bases in the United States, including Minot AFB, which is the only base in the nation to house two legs of the nuclear triad. The Sentinel program was established to rejuvenate the nation’s nuclear arsenal by replacing the 50-year-old Minuteman III ICBM weapon system with the LGM-35A Sentinel ICBM, which is designed to be viable through 2075.
President Donald Trump and his administration are prioritizing improving the nation’s nuclear capabilities, and his Big Beautiful Bill reflects this by funding and accelerating key modernization initiatives within the U.S. nuclear triad. The president’s legislation, which Congress passed in July, allocates $2.5 billion for the Sentinel program, provides $500 million to ensure the Minuteman III program remains safe and viable, secures $100 million for re-entry vehicle enhancements, and allocates $210 million for the MH-139 helicopter to monitor and maintain the missile fields.