Nuke chief: running out of time to begin updating nukes

February 27, 2016 at 3:30 a.m. | Updated February 27, 2016 at 3:35 a.m.

by Associated Press

This Thursday, Feb. 25, 2016 photo provided by the U.S. Air Force shows an unarmed Minuteman 3 intercontinental ballistic missile launches during an operational test from Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. The unarmed missile roared out of its underground bunker on the California coastline and soared over the Pacific, inscribing the signature of American power amid growing worry about North Korea's pursuit of nuclear weapons capable of reaching U.S. soil.(Staff Sgt. Jim Araos/U.S. Air Force via AP)
This Thursday, Feb. 25, 2016 photo provided by the U.S. Air Force shows an unarmed Minuteman 3 intercontinental ballistic missile launches during an operational test from Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. The unarmed missile roared out of its underground bunker on the California coastline and soared over the Pacific, inscribing the signature of American power amid growing worry about North Korea's pursuit of nuclear weapons capable of reaching U.S. soil.(Staff Sgt. Jim Araos/U.S. Air Force via AP)

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, California (AP) - The commander of U.S. nuclear war-fighting forces says time is running out to begin modernizing nuclear weapons that are reaching the end of their useful lives.

In the words of Navy Admiral Cecil Haney, who heads U.S. Strategic Command, "we're at the brick wall stage." He says there is little room left to extend the life of weapons such as the Minuteman 3 intercontinental ballistic missile, which has been operating since 1970.

Haney spoke in an interview Friday, the day after he and other senior Pentagon leaders witnessed a Minuteman 3 test launch at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.

Critics say the cost of nuclear modernization is too high and that the nation should reconsider whether it needs to build an entire new generation of weapons.

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