Britain’s nuclear deterrent force and the U.S.-U.K. special relationship
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Authors
Merritt, Emily S.
Subjects
Nuclear
deterrence
U.S.
U.K.
submarines
Polaris
Trident
V-bomber
Britain
United States
United Kingdom
weapons
special relationship
Cold War
SSN
SSBN
ICBM
SLBM
IRBM
ballistic
NATO
Nassau Agreement
McMahon Act
European Union
deterrence
U.S.
U.K.
submarines
Polaris
Trident
V-bomber
Britain
United States
United Kingdom
weapons
special relationship
Cold War
SSN
SSBN
ICBM
SLBM
IRBM
ballistic
NATO
Nassau Agreement
McMahon Act
European Union
Advisors
Yost, David
Date of Issue
2014-06
Date
Jun-14
Publisher
Monterey, California: Naval Postgraduate School
Language
Abstract
Britain established in 1940 the first national nuclear weapons program in the world, and this gave Britain credibility in participating in the U.S.-led Manhattan Project during World War II. Despite the interruption in U.S.-U.K. nuclear cooperation in 1946-1958 owing to the McMahon Act, since 1958 the United States and the United Kingdom have worked closely in the nuclear domain. Indeed, since the 1962 Nassau Summit, the United States has sold submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) and support systems to the United Kingdom. In 1980 and 1982, London chose to modernize its nuclear deterrent with Trident SLBMs. The British made a similar decision in 2006, and it may be reconfirmed in 2016 with legislation to construct a new fleet of Trident nuclear ballistic missile submarines. Britain has been motivated to remain a nuclear weapons state in order to protect its own national security interests and to contribute to the security of its NATO allies in an unpredictable international security environment.
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Thesis
Description
Series/Report No
Department
National Security Affairs
Organization
Identifiers
NPS Report Number
Sponsors
Funder
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Citation
Distribution Statement
Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.
Rights
This publication is a work of the U.S. Government as defined in Title 17, United States Code, Section 101. Copyright protection is not available for this work in the United States.