The US President has the authority to launch the US nuclear arsenal at any time and without reference to any other authority. During the Presidential election Democrats attempted to discredit Trump’s ability to handle the grave responsibilities of office that come from control of the country’s thousands of nuclear warheads. US nuclear posture and doctrine is now set to remain a high-profile, contentious issue in the first year of the Trump Administration.
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Report: Responsible Nuclear Sovereignty and the Future of the Global Nuclear Order
What are states' responsibilities around the possession of nuclear weapons?
Our latest report, written in partnership with the Institute for Conflict, Cooperation, and Security (ICCS), at the University of Birmingham, seeks to foster an international dialogue about the responsibilities of nuclear-armed states.
A Policy Proposal for the UK Government: Prevent a Nuclear Catastrophe
Paul Ingram, BASIC’s Executive Director, was one of the judges in the recent Young Student Pugwash competition. Participants were asked to write a blog in response to the below challenge. The winner is Caroline Leroy. We reproduce her blog post here.
The Implications of the Trident Test Failure
Executive Director of BASIC, Paul Ingram, recently authored a piece in the Huffington Post in response to the late surfacing of the June Trident test failure.
How did the Trident test fail and what did Theresa May know?
On 23d January, BASIC Executive Director, Paul Ingram was quoted in the US Defence Journal for his analysis of the recent Trident missile test failure.
How serious was the Trident missile test failure?
On 22nd January, BASIC Executive Director, Paul Ingram was quoted in the US Defence Journal for his analysis of the recent Trident missile test failure.
“It is a complex system. It is an amazing feat of human engineering but everything has to work or there is catastrophic failure and a catastrophic failure can have catastrophic consequences.”
Read the full article here.
Donald Trump poised to take control of US nuclear weapons arsenal
BASIC's Chairman of the board, Dr Trevor McCrisken was interviewed by the News & Star about the new President-elect, Donald Trump and his pending responsibility over the nuclear codes. Trump's seemingly implusive and reactive temprement has aroused global concerns that he could launch a reckless nucear strike – McCrisken outlined the potential risks;
“You could imagine perhaps a situation where he just loses his mind or gets angry and decides to launch.”
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.