BASIC MEDIA ADVISORY

NATO Defence Ministers Meeting 9 June

TUESDAY 7 JUNE 2005

Call for NATO to withdraw all tactical nukes from Europe

According to their press release, Defence Ministers from member states of NATO will meet at NATO HQ in Brussels on 9 June. Unfortunately, the press release makes no mention of them also meeting in Brussels under the banner of the Nuclear Planning Group.

The Nuclear Planning Group, "one of NATO's key defence decision-making bodies, takes decisions on the Alliance's nuclear policy, which is kept under constant review and modified or adapted in the light of new developments".

In an effort to increase transparency in NATO in general, and specifically regarding the secret decision-making of the Nuclear Planning Group, BASIC, the Arms Control Association, the Natural Resources Defense Council and Oxford Research Group have written to General-Secretary Jaap de Hoop Scheffer requesting that he facilitates a dialogue within NATO on the withdrawal of all US sub-strategic or tactical nuclear weapons from Europe.

In recent months, elected representatives in several European countries have raised this issue and some decided to ask for it be discussed within NATO. Additionally, the issue was raised on the floor of the recently concluded Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference by States Parties delegations and by NGOs on behalf of civil society.[1]

"We accept that the number of US sub-strategic or tactical nuclear weapons based in Europe have been drastically reduced since the end of the Cold War but NATO policy still describes nuclear weapons as the 'supreme guarantee of Allied security'. How does this equate with a commitment to reduce reliance on nuclear forces?" said BASIC Director Dr Ian Davis.

According to recent reports, Moscow is prepared to negotiate an agreement on controlling tactical nuclear weapons, only on the condition that these weapons are deployed on the territories of those countries who posses them, said Russian Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov. In effect, Russia has indicated a willingness to enter into talks on reducing their much larger stockpile of sub-strategic nuclear weapons once the United States has withdrawn it estimated 480 B61s from bases in Europe (Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Turkey and the UK).[2]

BASIC, the Arms Control Association, the Natural Resources Defense Council and Oxford Research Group urge the United States and Russia to pursue this opportunity and seek agreement on a verifiable elimination of all sub-strategic nuclear weapons. To that end, exploratory talks should commence during the NATO-Russia Council meeting of Defence Ministers on Thursday.

Please call Nigel Chamberlain on +44 (0)20 7324 4684 for further information or to arrange interviews.

[1] http://www.basicint.org/nuclear/NPT/2005rc/nptngo-Naughton.pdf

[2] http://www.nrdc.org/media/pressreleases/050506.asp