Tuesday, December 12, 2023

114 - How Powerful were UK Nuclear Weapons?

The UK´s strategy has backfired.

The UK´s  attack on Nordstream backfired.
If Truss broke NPT then it backfired.
There were supposed to be more anti-Russian missions, it is falling as well.
In fact the whole policy of Russian confrontation has failed. 

As a rogue nation The UK is loosing its nuclear deterrence.



INTRO ABOUT UK´s NUCLEAR DETERRENT - TRIDENT SUBMARINES:

15 Sept 2022 - SUBLANT HOSTS REGIONAL, AREA COMMANDER SUMMIT

NORFOLK, Va. Submarine Force Atlantic (SUBLANT) hosted a regional and area commander summit onboard Naval Support Activity Hampton Roads, Sept. 15.

The summit allowed for focused discussion to identify obstacles that might inhibit an overwhelming response to a major fire aboard a nuclear-powered warship,” said Capt. Stephen Mongold, SUBLANT’s director for maintenance and material readiness. “The intent is to develop and align on priority actions to further improve our collective readiness for a coordinated, effective response.”

28 Oct 2022 - How Powerful Are UK Nuclear Weapons?

The UK has come closest to creating a minimum nuclear deterrence. The UK possesses 225 nuclear warheads, 120 of which may be deployed aboard four Vanguard-class nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs). This estimate is based on public information on the British nuclear arsenal, talks with UK officials, and nuclear forces structure analysis. The UK’s only nuclear platform and delivery system are SSBNs with 16 missile tubes.

In 1980, the Polaris program was discontinued and replaced with the Trident program. The Trident program’s headquarters are located at the Clyde Naval Base in Faslane.

Even though it has its independent nuclear deterrent, the United Kingdom produces and maintains the missiles that make up Trident. While the United Kingdom is responsible for constructing the Vanguard submarines, the United States is in charge of missile production.




THE FIRST ACCIDENT:

1 Nov 2022 - Russia Considers Retaliation Against UK After Blaming Royal Navy For Nord Stream Blast

Russia said on Tuesday it was considering what “further steps” to take in connection with its allegation that Britain was responsible for an attack on the Nord Stream undersea gas pipelines.

Russia’s defense ministry said on Saturday that British navy personnel had blown up the Nord Stream pipelines in September, an assertion that London said was false and designed to distract from Russian military failures in Ukraine.

There is evidence that Britain is involved in sabotage … a terrorist act against vital energy infrastructure,”Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

Such actions cannot be put aside. Of course, we will think about further steps. It definitely cannot be left like this,” Peskov said.

6 Not 2022 - Nuclear-armed Navy submarine aborted top secret mission due to life-or-death fire beneath the waves

7 Nov 2022 - Fire on board Royal Navy submarine was 'quickly extinguished'

A Royal Navy submarine suffered a fire on board, Forces News has been told.

The fire on HMS Victorious "was in a self-contained module and was quickly extinguished", according to a Navy source.

A Royal Navy spokesperson said: "The Continuous At Sea Deterrent [CASD] is unaffected, but we do not comment on the detail of submarine operations."

According to reports in the Sun newspaper, the Vanguard-class Victorious ditched a top-secret mission and rose to the surface to deal with the onboard fire.

The newspaper also reported that she was carrying Trident nuclear missiles when the blaze was dealt with.

Following Nato policy, the UK uses minimal credible nuclear deterrence, but does not follow a policy of 'no-first use' – which would prevent launching a nuclear attack unless first coming under nuclear attack from another state.

It has vowed not to use or threaten a nuclear attack against any non-nuclear state within the NPT unless the agreement is breached.

8 Nov 2022 - ‘A disaster waiting to happen’: British nuclear-armed sub resurfaces after fire onboard

The Ministry of Defence said the incident on HMS Victorious happened six weeks ago.  

[MRT: This would put the "accident" to the end of September when the Nordstream was attacked. Was it really an accident or did Russia knock it out?]  


SECOND ACCIDENT?: 

7 Nov 2022 - Rishi Sunak and Suella Brawemen are evacuated (video)

UK PM Rishi Sunak runs off stage and is rushed out of the room. What‘s happening?

[MRT: There was no Russian announcement at this time about Nuclear positioning. Only a year after we learned that another Trident submarine had supposedly malfunction.] 

 

NUCLEAR TALKS BETWEEN ADULTS:

7 Nov 2022 - National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan has held undisclosed talks with top Russian

officials in hopes of reducing the risk the war in Ukraine spills over or escalates into a nuclear conflict, the Wall Street Journal reported yesterday.

8 Nov 2022 - Ukraine war: US confirms 'communications' with Kremlin

US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan has confirmed communication channels between Washington and Moscow remain open. 

8 Nov 2022 - The United States and Russia are preparing to resume negotiations on nuclear weapons

... control - Bloomberg. A spokesman for the US State Department confirmed preparations for a meeting of the bilateral advisory commission, but declined to say when and where it would take place. 

[MRT: What was a trigger for this? What caused the need to do this?]   


AS IF THE UK´S NUCLEAR DETERRENCE IS NO MORE:

9 Nov 2022 - Macron unveils shift in military posture as war returns to Europe

Europe is not sheltered anymore from missile and drone strikes. And we must integrate this reality,” Macron said, speaking on the Dixmude helicopter carrier, docked in the Mediterranean military base of Toulon which is home to more than 24,000 troops.

15 Nov 2022 - France’s Military Pivot to Europe

The Central Europeans along with other staunchly Atlanticist countries also often think that when Macron speaks about strategic autonomy for Europe, it is about the gradual weakening NATO or the creation of a defense structure in competition with the U.S.-led military alliance. Indeed, Macron once dubbed NATO as “brain-dead,” a description that has endured.

17 Nov 2022 - U.S., Russia Discuss Threats of Nuclear Use 

17 Nov 2022 - RU: CMD S-400 Triumf system crews repel mock enemy's attack in Siberia

18 Nov 2022 - RU: Baltic Fleet's Bastion coastal missile system crews launch simulated strikes at maritime targets


SLOW NUCLEAR CASTRATION

(Castration is any action, surgical, chemical, or otherwise, by which a male loses use of the testicles: the male gonad)

24 Nov 2022 - Russia Discusses Ukraine in String of Calls with Defense Chiefs

25 Nov 2022 - Belgium Blocks Export of Nuclear Technology to UK (excerpt)

The Belgian government has refused authorisation for a specialised isostatic press needed to maintain Britain’s nuclear arsenal.

[The company is USA-BLG joint venture] 

25 Nov 2022 - 'Outrageous': Brussels sparks fury as it blocks export of nuclear defence tech to UK

The UK needs a so-called specialised isostatic press to maintain its nuclear arsenal, which includes the Trident II D5, the Royal Navy's ballistic missile system with a range of over 4,000 nautical miles.

Britain and Belgium are locking horns in a furious despite after Brussels blocked the export of nuclear technology that plays a crucial role in maintaining the UK's nuclear deterrent...

[MRT: Looks like a US request. Belgium can not decide on such level without consultations with USA or it was a USA request.] 

The UK’s independent nuclear deterrent has existed for over 60 years and is constantly deployed at sea in atomic-powered ballistic missile submarines. These include the HMS Vanguard, HMS Victorious, HMS Vigilant and HMS Vengeance.

27 Nov 2022 - Vladimir Putin says world facing 'most dangerous decade since WW2'

8 Dec 2022 - France-UK relations: A much-needed strategic reboot
 
Both France and Britain are trying to reposition themselves post-Brexit. In pursuit of its Global Britain Strategy free from the shackles of the EU’s institutional arrangements, the UK is looking towards strengthening ties with the Anglo-Saxon democracies of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the US, and important powers like India and Japan; while France is championing strategic autonomy to reduce Europe’s security dependency on Washington and NATO, and prioritising strengthening the powerful but recently strained Franco-German axis in the EU.

9 Dec 2022 - Stratcom Gets New Leader

"Let us always ensure that the most dangerous weapons ever produced by human science are managed with the greatest responsibility ever produced by human government." Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III

Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III oversaw the ceremony and told the audience that the command is adjusting to face new challenges.

[MRT: The NATO nuclear umbrella got a serious fracture. A rogue state may no more be defended as automatically as before.] 

 

CONSEQUENCES:

31 Jan 2023 - 'Defect' found during nuclear submarine maintenance

HMS Vanguard was found to have a defect "from work done in the past" when the vessel was in dry dock, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) said.

11 April 2023 - Royal Navy submarine completes historic Mediterranean mission

The conventionally armed Hunter-killer submarine, HMS Audacious was on operations for two days short of a year – a mammoth 363 days away from her base on the Clyde, making it the longest ever deployment for any of the Royal Navy’s new Astute-class submarines.

3 May 2023Replacing the UK’s Nuclear Deterrent: Progress of the Dreadnought Class 

October 2023 - UK May Host U.S. Nuclear Weapons Again 

The United Kingdom may host U.S. nuclear weapons on its territory for the first time since their complete withdrawal 15 years ago, a move that Russia stated would escalate already high nuclear tensions in Europe.

The UK nuclear arsenal consists of an estimated 225 nuclear warheads for submarine-launched ballistic missiles. The U.S. nuclear weapons that potentially are headed for the UK most likely would be B61-12 gravity bombs. 

Plans call for the dormitory construction to begin in June 2024 and finish in February 2026. The 2024 budget allotted $50 million for the project. Meanwhile, NATO is overseeing infrastructure and security upgrades at nuclear weapons storage sites in Europe, including Lakenheath, according to 2023 budget documents.

11 Nov 2023 - British nuclear submarine, which was prepared to confront Russia, has been sitting idle for a year waiting for repairs 

HMS Audacious... already needs repairs. There are no free dry docks for the submarine. 

In 2023 some Royal Navy attack submarines did not go to sea at all

In January this year it was reported that inspectors found a "defect" on HMS Vanguard, the lead boat of the four Vanguard-class submarines, while it was undergoing maintenance work.

The defect, from "work done in the past" was "promptly reported and fixed", the MoD said at the time.

In May the vessel finally left the Devonport dockyard where it had undergone a seven-and-a-half-year refit.

[MRT: It looks like the sea is unsafe for UK´s submarines. Did Russia reserve the right to sink the perpetrator?]  

6 Dec 2023 - Scrapping Trident could pay for £25k a year Scexit minimum income guarantee says SNP minister

The Scottish Government launched its ninth taxpayer-funded independence prospectus on Wednesday focusing on benefits, and admitted it would take years to properly set it up in an independent country. 

 

ACCIDENT ANNOUNCEMENT A YEAR AFTER:

20 Nov 2023 - Nuclear-armed submarine suffered malfunction

A Royal Navy nuclear submarine suffered a "concerning" malfunction while diving, the BBC has been told.

The incident on board the unnamed Vanguard class submarine, which carries the UK's trident nuclear missiles, happened more than a year ago while it was preparing to go out on patrol. 

[MRT: Could these two events be connected? 

     "7 Nov 2022 - Rishi Sunak and Suella Brawemen are evacuated" ]

  

OTHER UK RELATED POSTS

most of the research about UK´s role, motives has been conducted in 2023
The summary is here:




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