LAS VEGAS, NV - Sen. John McCain says he would seek to break U.S. reliance on foreign oil by 2025 by stepping up offshore drilling, nuclear power and conservation.

Aides to the Republican presidential contender say his aim is strategic energy independence - a U.S. economy where oil is no longer be the primary fuel or dependent on cartels such as OPEC.

McCain made his pledge Wednesday in a speech at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas. Nevada is shaping up as a potential swing state in the general election.

McCain faces local critics concerned his plan to build 45 new nuclear reactors will generate waste that has to be dumped at a controversial proposed repository at Nevada's Yucca Mountain.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)