Nuclear weapons

“If the UK envisages another 50 years of British security being based on threatening other populations with mass destruction then we encourage other states to do the same and thus paradoxically we increase our security risk rather than decrease it.” (Kofi Anan, former UN Secretary-General)

Trident is the UK’s nuclear weapons system. The UK stockpiles around 200 operational nuclear warheads. These launch from US Trident missiles on four submarines. Each warhead has around eight times the explosive power of the Hiroshima bomb which killed over 200,000 people.

What is Trident?

Trident is the UK's nuclear weapons system. Developed by the US during the Cold War, it commenced in 1994 with a 30 year lifespan. The UK stockpiles around 200 operational nuclear warheads. These launch from US Trident missiles on four submarines. Each warhead has around eight times the explosive power of the Hiroshima bomb which killed over 200, 000 people.

Is Iran arming itself with nuclear weapons? Are the United States planning another war in the Middle East? Would that war be legal? As the press speculates, and given the current situation in Iraq, it is right to be asking such questions and BPEC intends to do just that with a number of meetings and discussion groups now in the planning stages.

At the time of writing, world leaders are in a deadlock over the correct response to Iran's uranium enrichment programme. Britain and France, with support from the US are calling for a Security Council resolution to halt Iran's activities. China and Russia, both veto holders, are refusing to comply. All parties involved want a peaceful solution, but Bush has refused to rule out military action