It was reported that the US will deploy nuclear weapons to the United Kingdom (UK) after 15 years against the Russian threat.
According to Pentagon documents obtained by the Telegraph, a leading UK newspaper, the nuclear warheads are planned to be placed in a new facility to be built at the Royal Air Force’s Lakenheath military base in Suffolk.
According to the news report, the US aims to place nuclear warheads three times more powerful than the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima in World War II.
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Washington withdrew its nuclear weapons from the UK in June 2008, deciding that the post-Cold War threat from Moscow was over. Lakenheath military base is used by the US Air Force.
According to the documents, it is planned to place B61-12 nuclear bombs at Lakenheath. Construction of the facility will begin in June. B61-12 bombs, which can generate up to 50 kilotons of energy, are three times more powerful than the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima by the US in 1945. The nuclear bombs can be carried by F-35 fighter jets at the base.
Pentagon budget documents leaked to the press in August included plans for a new facility in Lakenheath. It was reported that $50 million was allocated for the construction of the new building, which was described as a “secure facility”. It was later stated that new hydraulic ramps and security systems would be installed at the base.
Russia had warned that the deployment of nuclear weapons at the facilities would escalate tensions and announced that necessary countermeasures would be taken.
A Pentagon spokesman told the Telegraph that, as a matter of policy, he could neither confirm nor deny allegations relating to nuclear weapons.
New Ukraine plan from the US
On the other hand, US officials, who asked not to be identified, told the Washington Post, one of the country’s well-known newspapers, that Joe Biden’s administration is working on a long-term plan to support Ukraine, but that the recapture of the territories lost by Kiev in 2024 is not among the goals.
The new plan aims to strengthen Ukraine’s military to fend off Russian aggression, officials said. In addition, it is also planned to make Ukraine’s economy resilient to the negative effects of the war.
The sources added that Washington has learned lessons from Ukraine’s failure to achieve the expected success in its June counteroffensive.
