Nuclear weapons WON’T stop ISIS: Trident chief says UK warheads are no deterrent to terror

2016-01-21

Nuclear weapons WON’T stop ISIS: Trident chief says UK warheads are no deterrent to terror

MAINTAINING the Trident nuclear deterrent will not stop Islamic State militants from attacking the UK, the man in charge of Britain’s atomic submarine fleet has warned.

PUBLISHED: 00:00, Thu, Jan 21, 2016 | UPDATED: 12:16, Thu, Jan 21, 2016

Even if Trident is maintained it will not stop ISIS from attacking the UK says chief

But a powerful fleet of atomic subs on constant alert serves as a big stick to deter rogue states from supplying groups like ISIS with nuclear material, he added.Speaking to Express.co.uk, Rear Admiral John Weale made the case for continued investment in the UK’s weapons of mass destruction, saying they were „final insurance [for] both the UK way of life and those of our allies”.

But he also acknowledged that having four Vanguard-class submarines packed with nuclear warheads – with at least one kept on 24-hour patrol at any time – would do little to deter jihadis from plotting attacks against this country.

Instead, Adm Weale said possessing Trident rockets meant the UK could send a powerful warning to countries thinking about supplying the twisted terror group with atomic warheads.

It is not here to deter terrorism; there are other policies and capabilities to deter terrorism

Rear Admiral John Weale

Speaking in the Faslane Naval Base, where the bombs are held and where Express.co.uk was given rare access this week, he said: „The deterrent is not here to deter ISIS…”It is not here to deter terrorism; there are other policies and capabilities to deter terrorism.

„This is to deter those countries that may wish to sponsor nuclear terrorism. This is a deterrent for nuclear capabilities.

„It is a deterrent for an extreme threat of a nuclear attack on her allies.”

ISIS is not thought to be close to developing or obtaining nuclear weapons, although it boasted last May that it was poised to buy its first nuclear bomb „within a year”.

Adm Weale did maintain that Trident can help send a message to other countries about supply ISIS

The merciless organisation said it hoped to purchase a device „through weapons dealers with links to corrupt officials” in Pakistan.But it admitted obtaining the deadly weapon would be a challenge and said it would settle for a „few thousand tons of ammonium nitrate explosive”.

Adm Weale’s comments could be viewed as a veiled warning about the threat posed by Iran and Russia’s nuclear programme.

Both countries lie within easy range of ISIS strongholds in Iraq and Syria and while Iran has no confirmed nuclear warheads at its disposal, it is widely-regarded as hoping to acquire one.

Terror experts have also flagged up troubled regions in Pakistan as potential markets for ISIS to purchase a dirty or nuclear bomb.Afzal Ashraf, a former senior officer in the RAF, said the country was „the most likely place” for ISIS to obtain a nuclear explosive.

The country remains outside both the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty.

Its nuclear arsenal raises the risk that the deadly weapons or the ingredients used to construct them – enriched uranium or plutonium – could fall into the hands of ISIS.

Also speaking from Faslane, commodore Dan Martyn, the commanding officer of HMS Vigilant, insisted Britain’s stockpile of nuclear weapons was secure.

While he acknowledged „there would be a value, I would imagine, to having possession of a nuclear warhead, the security exists to make sure that doesn’t happen”.

Forrás: http://www.express.co.uk