US President Barack Obama is revamping his country's nuclear strategy to substantially limit the conditions under which it would use nuclear weapons.

The president made his remarks in an interview with the New York Times, ahead of a formal announcement on Tuesday.

The new US nuclear strategy explicitly states that nuclear weapons will not be used against non-nuclear states in compliance with the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty, even if they attacked the US with biological or chemical weapons or launched a cyber attack. President  Obama stressed, however, exceptions could be made for "outliers" Iran and North Korea.

On Thursday, President Obama will sign a new nuclear disarmament treaty with Russia.