NATO’s nuclear posture is scheduled to undergo a significant modernization over the next decade that involves upgrading both the nuclear weapons and delivery vehicles. The modernization will significantly increase the military capabilities of NATO’s nuclear posture in Europe. The modernization plan contradicts key elements of the Deterrence and Defense Posture Review (DDPR).
NATO’s Nuclear Posture
Scotland: questioning nuclear weapons and NATO membership
UK Prime Minister David Cameron meets with Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond in Edinburgh today to sign a historic deal that will see a legally-binding referendum vote on the single question of full independence for Scotland within the next two years.
Open letter to NATO Secretary General on B-61 upgrades
BASIC has written to the NATO Secretary General with concern over the rising cost of the new full-scope Life Extension Program for the U.S. B-61 nuclear bombs. The U.S. Department of Defense estimates the program costing billion, more than doubling original estimations.
Dissecting the DDPR
NATO’s Chicago Summit in May provided the Alliance with its second opportunity in two years to re-think the presence of U.S. theatre nuclear weapons in Europe, but for the second consecutive time, NATO failed. In this report, BASIC policy consultant, Ted Seay, examines key decisions made (and not made) in Chicago, in relation to the future of NATO's nuclear sharing arrangements and the Alliance as a whole.
Press Release: NATO declaration on nuclear weapons is missed opportunity: BASIC Executive Director
NATO has missed an opportunity to clear up the divisive issue of U.S. tactical nuclear weapons in Europe at its Chicago summit, BASIC Executive Director Paul Ingram said today.
“If the U.S. and its allies aren’t careful, they will find themselves scrambling to control disarmament by default , as the Germans and others take decisions about the future delivery systems of these Cold War relics which they all know serve no military purpose,” said Ingram.
NATO’s DDPR: What to Expect and What Needs to Be Done After Chicago
NOTE: This post follows up on the front page article published in Arms Control Today, May 2, 2012
Shaping a better, more open NATO
NATO Watch director and former BASIC executive director, Ian Davis, wrote this timely piece for The Hill's Congress Blog about build up to the NATO Summit in Chicago on May 20-21, 2012 and the elements that should be discussed amongst policymakers.
NATO’s Deterrence and Defence Posture Review and the Future of Nuclear Weapons
This report is a synthesis of an expert roundtable discussion held in Paris on the Alliance's approach to nuclear arms control. The Arms Control Association, BASIC, the Institute for Peace Research and Security Policy Hamburg, and the Institut de Relations Internationales et Strategique, jointly organized this event two months before NATO's conclusion of its Deterrence and Defense Posture Review and the upcoming summit in Chicago.