WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden approved a classified directive in March instructing US forces to prepare for potential "coordinated nuclear confrontations" involving Russia, China, and North Korea, the New York Times reported on Tuesday.

The classified document, revised approximately every four years, is so highly restricted that no electronic versions exist, with only a limited number of hard copies distributed to select national security officials and Pentagon leaders.

Recent speeches by two senior administration officials hinted at the change, ahead of a more comprehensive, unclassified update to Congress expected before the end of Biden’s term.

The Pentagon anticipates that China’s nuclear arsenal will match the size and diversity of US and Russian stockpiles within the next decade.

The updated guidance for nuclear weapons employment, released by Biden, reflects this growing concern, particularly with the significant expansion of China’s nuclear capabilities.

In June, Pranay Vaddi, the National Security Council’s senior director for arms control and nonproliferation, acknowledged the new guidance, which takes into account the realities of a "new nuclear era."

The guidance emphasizes the need to deter Russia, China, and North Korea simultaneously.

A spokesperson for the White House National Security Council, Sean Savett, confirmed that US nuclear policy is updated regularly to reduce nuclear risks and maintain stable deterrence.

He noted that while the specific details of the Guidance remain classified, its existence is not a secret and it is not a response to any single entity, country, or threat. — Agencies