Nuclear Disarmament Belgium
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B-61 Gravity Bomb
www.ccc.nps.navy.mil -
B-61 Nuclear Bomb Trainer
www.defenseimagery.mil
NATO Non-nuclear Weapon State
Sharing US Nuclear Weapons
Estimated Arsenal Size
- 10-20 U.S. non-strategic gravity B-61 warheads at the Kleine Brogel Air Base [1]
Weapons System [2]
- Non-strategic warheads: B-61-3, B-61-4
- Delivery Aircraft: Belgian F-16A/B
Modernization
- The current B61-3 and B61-4 deployed in Europe are scheduled to be converted into B61-12 over the next decade.
Estimated Destructive Forces [3]
- B-61-3: maximum yield of 170 Kilotons
- B-61-4: 45 Kilotons
Nuclear Weapons Policies
- 1999 NATO Strategic Concept confirms commitment to deploying nuclear weapons in Europe to maintain the "minimum level sufficient to preserve peace and stability." [4]
- In 2005 the Belgian Senate voted for a resolution requesting the government to broach the possibility of removal of U.S. nuclear weapons from Europe. [5]
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While NATO continues to reaffirm the importance of deploying U.S. nuclear weapons in Europe, disagreements among member states on this issue have become more pronounced since the German government expressed support for the withdrawal of U.S. nuclear weapons from Germany and Europe in October 2009. [6]
- The Deterrence and Defense Posture Review adopted at the May 2012 NATO Summit in Chicago states that "the Alliance's nuclear force posture currently meets the criteria for an effective deterrence and defense posture." Therefore, some experts argue that the scheduled nuclear modernization contradicts this concept. [7]
Treaty Commitments
Sources:
[1] Hans M. Kristensen, "Non-Strategic Nuclear Weapons, Special Report No. 3," Federation of American Scientists, May 2012, www.fas.org
[2] Hans M. Kristensen, "Non-Strategic Nuclear Weapons, Special Report No. 3," Federation of American Scientists, May 2012, www.fas.org.
[3] Hans M. Kristensen, "U.S. Nuclear Weapons in Europe," Natural Resources Defense Council, Feb. 2005, p. 9, www.nrdc.org.
[4] "The Alliance's New Strategic Concept," NATO, 24 April 1999, www.nato.int.
[5] Belgian Senate Resolution, 21 April 2005, www.nukestrat.com.
[6] Oliver Meier, "Steinmeier Calls for U.S. to Withdraw Nukes," Arms Control Today, 8 May 2009, www.armscontrol.org
[7] "The Deterrence and Defence Posture Review," NATO, 20 May 2012, www.nato.int.
[8] Inventory of International Nonproliferation Organizations & Regimes, http://cns.miis.edu.
This material is produced independently for NTI by the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Monterey Institute of International Studies and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of and has not been independently verified by NTI or its directors, officers, employees, or agents. Copyright © 2011 by MIIS.
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The Nuclear Disarmament Resource Collection contains information and analysis of nuclear weapons disarmament proposals and progress worldwide, including detailed coverage of disarmament progress in countries who either possess or host other countries' nuclear weapons on their territories.
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