CRS – Conventional Prompt Global Strike and Long-Range Ballistic Missiles: Background and Issues, Amy F. Woolf, Specialist in Nuclear Weapons Policy. May 5, 2014.

“The George W. Bush Administration’s interest in the use of conventional weapons for precision, long-range strike missions became evident in the 2001 Nuclear Posture Review (NPR). This study called for the integration of precision conventional weapons with strategic nuclear forces in a new category of “offensive strike” weapons. Several other Pentagon studies published during the Bush Administration also called on the United States to develop the capability to attack targets around the world, in under an hour, with conventional warheads. The Obama Administration, in the 2010 NPR, also emphasized the role that long-range, non-nuclear systems could play in supporting “U.S. regional deterrence and reassurance goals.” The 2010 NPR indicated that conventional power projection capabilities were part of “effective regional security
architectures,” arguing that these capabilities could help the United States assure and defend its allies, while reducing the role of nuclear weapons in U.S. security strategy.”