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Missile launches

The dangers of vulnerable nuclear forces

For a while during the Cold War, the nuclear standoff was almost comfortable. When the Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev was briefed on the destructive power of the hydrogen bomb, he told his son Sergei, he was so upset that he could not sleep for several nights. But then, he said, he realised that these weapons could never be used and he could sleep again.

To Fix North Korea, Start with Syria

When North Korea launched a nuclear test on 9 September – its fifth so far – it was making a clear statement to the international community of its intentions to continue to pursue full nuclear capability.

Clarifying Command on US Nuclear Weapons

Here’s a terrifying prospect: President Donald Trump with his finger on the nuclear button. This erratic narcissist with little knowledge of the world and, according to his former ghost writer, an attention span of five minutes, with the power to set off a nuclear war.  This seems unlikely to come about now, with Trump trailing in the polls, but the election is some way off and it cannot be ruled out.

Trident Wrapped Up?

It is a mystery why Cameron and then May took Trident to a vote yesterday. OK, so it’s nice to start off with a good strong issue that delivers a comfortable government majority, unites the Party and splits the opposition. But it risks slaughtering the goose that had just kept laying those golden eggs.