In a bizarre New Year's Eve tweet, U.S. Strategic Command, which oversees the country's nuclear capabilities, referenced the Times Square ball drop and said it is ready to drop something "much, much bigger" if ever needed. A video attached to the tweet showed stealth bombers with pounding music in the background flying toward an apparent target, dropping what look like two nuclear bombs on a target that explodes in a giant fireball.
The tweet, which received almost instant criticism on social media, was quickly deleted, and an apology soon followed.
“Our previous NYE tweet was in poor taste and does not reflect our values,” the agency said. “We are dedicated to the security of America and allies.”
A spokeswoman for StratCom told The New York Times that the post "was part of our Year in Review series meant to feature our command priorities: strategic deterrence, decisive response and combat-ready force."
"It was a repost from earlier in the year, dropping a pair of conventional Massive Ordnance Penetrators at a test range in the United States," the statement said, according to the Times.
It’s unclear why the agency sent out a social media post that seemed to threaten an attack of some kind on one of the most festive nights of the year when most of the world is celebrating the coming new year.
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