The UK is preparing to take a more active role in NATO nuclear defense, an indication that there is growing doubt in Europe about the credibility of US guarantees of security. Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer asserts the necessity of putting the country on ‘military alert’.
The government is planning to introduce new strategic capabilities, such as fighter planes that will be able to carry nuclear weapons, the source said. The move is to be used to augment a currently ongoing upgrade of Britain’s nuclear deterrent, the Trident programme, which involves a £15 billion (around $20 billion) investment and the building of up to 12 new submarines under the AUKUS partnership with Australia and the US.
As Pacific Forum senior fellow William Alberke explains, the speeding up of nuclear plans in the UK and elsewhere in Europe is against the backdrop of worries over diminishing US commitment to making certain that a nuclear deterrent is available to allies. It is responding to balancing the threat of Washington’s disengagement from European security.
Among the most critical of the new British Strategic Defence Review’s provisions was an offer to start negotiating with the US to redistribute nuclear duties within NATO. The document foresees complete overhaul of Britain’s armed forces to put the country on high alert.
With US President Donald Trump demanding that NATO countries increase defence spending to 5% of GDP, a level that exceeds even current US spending, European states are reviewing their own nuclear strategy. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, for his part, proposes a 3.5% target for core defence needs.
Whereas among NATO’s European members, only France and Britain possess nuclear stocks, only London now formally places its nuclear powers within the collective defence system of the alliance. Strengthening Britain’s role in NATO’s nuclear policy could be a crucial step towards securing European security as the horizon for the rise in geopolitical challenges and possible reduced U.S. involvement draws near.
