US President Barack Obama is planning "dramatic reductions" in the country's nuclear arsenal, says a senior US administration official.

This comes as part of a sweeping policy review designed to prevent the spread of atomic weapons, the BBC reported.

The review "will point to dramatic reductions in the stockpile, while maintaining a strong and reliable deterrent," the official said. He added that it will lead to a greater role for conventional weapons.

Obama is to meet his defence secretary, Robert Gates, later on Monday to discuss the new nuclear strategy.

Officials say thousands of nuclear weapons could be cut, many by retiring weapons that are now kept in storage.

They say the new strategy will be an important step towards Obama's declared aim of reversing the spread of nuclear weapons and seeking a world without them.

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