|
|||||
|
|||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||
 |
 |
    |
|
|
|||
 |
|
||
|
|||
|
|
|
|
||||||||
|
U.S. Has Up To 480 Nukes in Europe, Study Says
A new report declares that the United States has as many as 480 nuclear weapons spread across eight air bases in Europe, the New York Times reported today (see GSN, Feb. 7). A senior military official in Europe, however, said the number was “around 200” and had been “significantly reduced” in the last few years. The National Resources Defense Council based its figure on recently declassified documents, commercial satellite imagery and other documents, the Times reported. The organization determined the short-range B-61 bombs — which can be dropped by fighter aircraft — were being kept under U.S. control at eight bases in Germany, The United Kingdom, Italy, Belgium, Turkey and the Netherlands. The accuracy of the report’s estimate is “in the ballpark,” according to a former senior U.S. officer in Europe. In June 2004, NATO reported that the U.S. nuclear arsenal in Europe had remained steady for more than 10 years, meaning any changes are likely to have occurred in recent months, according to the Times. Maintaining a sizable nuclear presence in Europe hinders international nuclear nonproliferation efforts, the National Resources Defense Council argued in the report. It notes that thousands of long-range U.S. missiles could be used to hit any target within minutes, the Times reported. U.S. nuclear weapons are maintained in Europe to support NATO’s mission to “maintain peace and stability in the region,” said Capt. Curry Graham, spokesman for the U.S. European Command. Military officials have previously said that the weapons could be used to deter the threat of a rogue nation such as Iran or Syria from using unconventional weaponry. “Militarily, you can’t rule something out like a biological threat, so this capability has not been taken off the table,” the retired U.S. officer said. U.S. officials have no plans to remove the nuclear weapons, the senior officer said. “Some allies and U.S. military see a lot of value in going to zero,” he said. “That said, some allies and U.S. military see value in at least keeping some capability” (Eric Schmitt, New York Times, Feb. 9).
| ||||||||||
Back to top
