Nuclear Non-Proliferation News
September 10, 2007
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News
Welcome to Nuclear Non-Proliferation News, a monthly news service from
the Acronym Institute for Disarmament Diplomacy.
In this month's edition, the Acronym Institute notes with deep regret
the death of Air Marshall Lord Garden. As Convener of
the All-party Parliamentary group on Global Security and Non-Proliferation,
Tim Garden was able to engage politicians from all parties in reasoned
discussion and debate on non-proliferation. His expertise, intellect,
hard work, and friendly, cooperative way of working on these issues will
be greatly missed.
This weekend First Minister of the Scottish Parliament
Alex Salmond (Scottish Nationalist) has announced a Trident summit
to take place next month. In response to a letter from Green MSP Robin
Harper, Salmond wrote, "I want to get to a position where we can persuade
the UK government to change its stance both on the replacement programme
and on the general principle of maintaining a nuclear deterrent." The
summit is expected also to increase pressure on Westminster over the transport
of nuclear weapons to and from the Royal Naval Armaments Depot at Coulport.
The risks asssociated with nuclear weapons continue
to be highlighted with the news that a US B-52 bomber flew across the
central United States with six cruise missiles armed with nuclear warheads
mistakenly attached to the airplane's wing.
The Herald's Defence Correspondent Ian Bruce
reports that the UK's Atomic Weapons Establishment at Aldermaston is "secretly
working on the design of a revamped British nuclear warhead". This
warhead is described as a UK version of the controversial US Reliable
Replacement Warhead (RRW).
The divergeances between the US and Russia over missile defence and deteriorating
relations between NATO and Russia continue to dominate the headlines.
This month Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico and Austrian
Defense Minister Norbert Darabos speak out against US plans to deploy
the system in Eastern Europe, whilst UK fighter jets
have been launched to intercept Russian military planes reported to have
been patrolling in NATO airspace.
The BBC and Scottish newspapers report on increased campaigning
at Faslane, in the run up to the October 1 demonstration at the Trident
base.
The anniversaries of Hiroshima and Nagasaki brought
many stories in the US and British media arguing that the bombings were
justified, but also calls for further progress on elimination of nuclear
weapons.
In this month's edition
An archive of press coverage is available on our website at: www.acronym.org.uk/news.
We welcome your comments and feedback. Please send your comments to info@acronym.org.uk.
Salmond calls Trident Summit
Bringing nuclear
warheads up north? Not if I have my way, warns Salmond
Hamish MacDonell and James Kirkup, Scotsman, September 10, 2007
ALEX Salmond has told officials to explore every possible avenue in
an attempt to prevent the UK government from transporting nuclear warheads
across Scotland, it emerged last night. The First Minister has also called
a "Trident summit" for next month to increase the pressure on Westminster
over the movement of nuclear warheads to the Faslane submarine base.
Salmond:
I will ban nuclear traffic
Tom Gordon, Sunday Times, September 9, 2007
THE Scottish first minister Alex Salmond is to issue a direct challenge
to Westminster’s control of UK defence policy by seeking to ban the transportation
of nuclear weapons on Scottish soil.
Pressure
on Westminster to scrap Trident
Kevin Schofield, The Herald, September 7, 2007
Bruce Crawford, the Minister for Parliamentary Business, told said the
summit was a chance for Scots to discuss whether the country should have
a non-nuclear future. advertisement He said: "The aim is to bring together
interested parties and representatives of civic Scotland to discuss the
impact new weapons of mass destruction would have on Scotland, and to
ask how a Scotland without nuclear weapons would look.
Harper
calls for nuclear weapons road risk probe
Nicholas Christian, Scotland on Sunday, August 5, 2007
GREEN party leader Robin Harper has demanded an inquiry into roads being
used to transport nuclear weapons. The Lothians MSP has written to First
Minister Alex Salmond claiming emergency planning exercises show that
government agencies are ill-prepared for an accident.
Trident and the UK Nuclear Programme
Britain
in top-secret work on new atomic warhead
Exclusive by IAN BRUCE, Defence Correspondent, The Herald
Scientists are secretly working on the design of a revamped British
nuclear warhead. The new device, designated the High Surety Warhead is
understood to be under development at the Atomic Weapons Establishment
at Aldermaston in Berkshire.
Technology
sharing that became dependence
Ian Bruce, Defence Correspondent, The Herald
Britain has been allowed to share America's nuclear weapons technology
since 1958 as part of a fairly one-sided defence pact, set up originally
to counter the threat of a Soviet invasion of Western Europe.
Dounreay
likely site for new reactor
By Rob Edwards, Environment Editor, Sunday Herald
A NEW reactor could be sited at Dounreay on the north coast of Scotland
as part of the UK government's plans to replace the Trident nuclear weapons
system over the next decade. The submarines that will carry the warheads
are planned to be powered by a new type of nuclear reactor. But before
it goes to sea, it will have to be checked for safety and reliability
at a land-based testing facility.
Atomic
Energy Authority in bid for Trident stake
By Tim Webb, The Independent, September 6, 2007
The UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) is among the bidders for the Government's
one-third stake in the company responsible for running the Trident submarine
nuclear missile programme at Aldermaston.
AWE
to get new factory
By Robert Rowlands, Newburytoday.co.uk, August 15, 2007
A COMPONENTS manufacturing facility will be built at the Atomic Weapons
Establishment’s Burghfield site, under plans being considered by West
Berkshire Council. The new building would put under one roof operations
that currently take place in a number of buildings at both AWE Burghfield
and AWE Aldermaston.
Commander
has a pot at his drunken sailors
Sunday Mail, September 2, 2007
A NAVY chief has hit out at the thuggish behaviour of sailors based at
Faslane on the Clyde. Commander Peter Adams said a series of riots had
tarnished the nuclear base's reputation. Sailors staying at the nuclear
base, near Helensburgh, Dunbartonshire, have gone on drunken rampages,
causing thousands of pounds worth of damage on site.
Preparing
for Thorp to restart
The Whitehaven News, August 16, 2007
THORP is almost there after the three-year shutdown caused by a massive
leak of radioactive liquor for which Sellafield operators BNG were fined
£500,000 for safety breaches.
US Nuclear Programme
In
Error, B-52 Flew Over U.S. With Nuclear-Armed Missiles
By Josh White, Washington Post, September 6, 2007
An Air Force B-52 bomber flew across the central United States last week
with six cruise missiles armed with nuclear warheads that were mistakenly
attached to the airplane's wing, defense officials said yesterday.
Administration
Increases Submarine Nuclear Warhead Production Plan
By Hans M. Kristensen, Strategic Security Blog, A project of the Federation
of American Scientists
The Bush administration has decided to more than double the number of
nuclear warheads undergoing an expensive upgrade for potential future
deployment on the Navy’s 14 ballistic missile submarines, according to
answers provided by the National Nuclear Security Administration in response
to questions from the Federation of American Scientists.
Microsoft's
mapping service uncovers top secret US submarine
By Arnold Zafra, Tech.Blorge.com, September 4, 2007
A Washington State ferry deck officer, Dan Twohig, who was searching
for a new home using Microsoft's Virtual Mapping service has accidentally
discovered a US nuclear-powered submarine at the Kitsap-Bangor naval base
with its propeller exposed while in dock.
Lawmakers
Resist White House Push for RRW
By William Matthews, Defense News, August 6, 2007
Two key House lawmakers dismissed as "irresponsible" and "empty rhetoric"
a recent warning by the Bush administration that the United States might
have to resume underground nuclear weapon tests if Congress fails to approve
the Reliable Replacement Warhead (RRW).
Missile Defence and NATO-Russia Relations
UK
jets shadow Russian bombers
BBC News Online, September 6, 2007
The UK's Royal Air Force has launched fighter jets to intercept eight
Russian military planes flying in airspace patrolled by Nato, UK officials
say.
Slovak
PM slams U.S. for missile defense "adventure"
Reuters, September 5, 2007
BRATISLAVA (Reuters) - Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico criticized the
United States for bypassing NATO with a plan to deploy a missile defense
system in central Europe, calling the project an adventure.
Analysis:
Putin puts on show of strength to impress voters
Tony Halpin of The Times, in Moscow, Times Online, September 6, 2007
The scrambling of Nato fighter jets occurred as Russia flexed its
military muscles across three oceans today and President Vladimir Putin
sealed a $1 billion arms deal in Asia.
Britain's role in
the new cold war
Matthew Holehouse, New Statesman, August 30, 2007
For years the Soviet Union and the US managed an uneasy balance of power.
Now Russia is challenging Bush's dreams of full spectrum dominance. And,
as the rhetoric heats up, a corner of Yorkshire finds itself on the front
line.
U.S.
missile shield is provocation: Austrian minister
Reuters, August 23, 2007
VIENNA (Reuters) - Austrian Defense Minister Norbert Darabos has called
U.S. plans for a missile defense shield in eastern Europe a "provocation"
reviving Cold War debates.
Russia
is commissioning new air based missiles
Pravda, August 16, 2007
One of the top priority directions of the development of Russia's strategic
aviation is commissioning the newest air based high precision long range
cruise missiles. According to the Commander of the Russian Air Forces
general-colonel Alexander Zelin strategic aircraft has always been and
remain the main component of the Air Force, part of the strategic nuclear
forces and the basic mean of defeating important objects in the territory
of the potential enemy, the most universal and mobile type of nuclear
deterrence in the multi-polar world.
Putin
increases missile defence rhetoric
By Isabel Gorst in Moscow, FT.com, August 12, 2007
The war of words between Moscow and the west over missile defence intensified
over the weekend as Vladimir Putin, Russia’s president, declared a new
radar station near St Petersburg to be “the first step in a large-scale
programme”.
Don't
rule out Putin's initiative
By Henry A. Kissinger, International Herald Tribune Opinion, August
9, 2007
The debate about missile defense, nearly 50 years old, has been reignited
by the plan to deploy elements of the American missile defense in the
Czech Republic and Poland. Familiar Cold War arguments have re-emerged
as Russia challenges the necessity of the deployment and asserts that
it is really designed to overcome Russian strategic forces rather than
Iranian threats as the Bush administration claims.
Campaigning steps up at Faslane
Second wave
at Faslane - 3 more arrested for cycling in to nuclear base
Indymedia.org.uk, September 4, 2007
At 11.00a.m. today, 3 more peace protesters breached security at the North
gate of the Faslane nuclear submarine base, entering on bicycles. This
second team from the ‘Faslane 365 Serious Organised Crime Investigation
and Prevention Team’ follows the earlier arrest of 3 women inside the
base. It is understood that they are being charged under the Serious Organised
Crime and Police Act (SOCPA). The total number of Scottish SOCRAP arrests
is now 6.
Japanese
atomic bomb survivors arrested during Faslane protest
Craig Brown, The Scotsman, July 26, 2007
SURVIVORS of the Nagasaki atomic bomb attack were among those arrested
at Faslane naval base yesterday during a protest at plans to renew the
Trident nuclear weapon system.
Young
teens arrested at Faslane
BBC News Scotland, July 28, 2007
Two 15-year-old girls are thought to be among nine people arrested during
a demonstration at the Faslane nuclear submarine base on the Clyde.
Nine
demonstrators arrested at teachers' Faslane protest
The Herald, August 1, 2007
Nine demonstrators were arrested during a protest by school teachers at
the Faslane nuclear base on the Clyde today.
Faslane
protest costs police £5m
BBC News Online, September 2, 2007
The cost of policing anti-nuclear protests at the Faslane naval base on
the Clyde has reached £5m, new figures have shown.
Airport
trespass charges dropped
BBC News Online, August 10, 2007
Eight anti-war protesters have been cleared of trespassing at Prestwick
Airport because signs on the fence did not clearly show it was an offence...
The anti-nuclear campaign group Trident Ploughshares had previously said
that its activists carried out inspections of the airport to look for
evidence of US munitions bound for Israel for use in the Lebanon conflict.
Hiroshima and Nagasaki anniversaries
Hiroshima
anniversary
Asahi Shimbun, August 9, 2007
Anniversaries this year marking the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and
Nagasaki, on Aug. 6 and 9, 1945, respectively, are being held against
an unusual backdrop. The two cities are reeling from former Defense Minister
Fumio Kyuma's controversial remark that the atomic bombing of Nagasaki
"could not be helped."
Terrible,
but not a crime
Hiroshima and Nagasaki should be remembered for the suffering which was
brought to an end
Oliver Kamm, The Guardian, Comment, August 6, 2007
Today is Hiroshima day, the anniversary of the dropping of the first
atomic bomb. As the wartime generation passes on, our sense of gratitude
is increasingly mixed with unease regarding one theatre of the second
world war. There is a widespread conviction that, at Hiroshima and Nagasaki,
America committed acts that were not only terrible but also wrong.
62
years after Hiroshima, nuclear weapons still unacceptable
Hideko Tamura - Medford, Ore, Letter published by USA Today, August 8,
2007
American views of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings are understandably
very different from what I experienced as a child survivor in Hiroshima.
Those who believe that the two bombs brought peace and saved lives are
limiting their perspectives...
Nagasaki
Marks 62nd A-Bomb Anniversary
By Chisaki Watanabe, Associated Press, Guardian Unlimited
TOKYO (AP) - All nuclear powers should eliminate their stockpiles and
Japan should turn its no-nuclear weapons policy into law, the mayor of
Nagasaki said Thursday at a ceremony marking the 62nd anniversary of the
world's second atomic bomb attack.
Read the Hiroshima Peace Delaration at www.acronym.org.uk/docs/0708/doc06.htm
and Nagasaki Peace Declaration at www.acronym.org.uk/docs/0708/doc07.htm.
Remembering Lord Garden
Air Marshal Lord Garden
The Telegraph, August 14, 2007
Air Marshal the Lord Garden, who has died aged 63, was a former RAF bomber
pilot and flying instructor who was made a Liberal Democrat life peer
in June 2004 when he became the party's defence spokesman.
Air
Marshal Lord Garden
Rigorous MoD planner, thinktank analyst and Liberal Democrat defence
spokesman
Jonathan Fryer, The Guardian, August 14, 2007
Defence analysts are rarely gifted with the ability to expound their
views in terms accessible to the general public, but Tim Garden, who has
died from cancer at the age of 63, was a notable exception.
Air
Marshal Lord Garden
The Independent, August 17, 2007
RAF pilot and shrewd defence analyst who became a Lib Dem spokesman
in the House of Lords
Air
Marshal Lord Garden
The Times, August 14, 2007
Beginning his RAF career flying Canberra light bombers in Germany
in the 1960s and going on to command one of the last squadrons of Vulcan
nuclear bombers in the 1970s, Tim Garden early made himself a reputation
as an officer who thought deeply about the capabilities – and limitations
– of both tactical and strategic air power in the geopolitical situation
confronting the Nato allies in the world of the Cold War and afterwards.
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