Briton arrested in NATO nuclear blockadeGreenpeace calls for "Nukes out of NATO"

A Briton was amongst 24 Greenpeace volunteers arrested this morning for blockading the main entrance to NATO with a replica B61 nuclear bomb and dropping a banner from the main NATO building roof calling for "Nukes out of NATO"¹.

The protest coincided with the start of a NATO Defence Ministers meeting preparing for a debate on the future of NATO.

A recent report by a US think tank revealed that 480 US/NATO nuclear weapons currently remain in Europe - twice the amount previously thought². These include 110 B61 nuclear bombs based at RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk³. The remaining weapons are spread across Germany, Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands, and Turkey. Each of these bombs has a destructive capacity up to ten times of that which destroyed Hiroshima and together they have a combined power capable of wiping Europe off the map.

Greenpeace Disarmament Campaigner Simon Clydesdale said "With all the debate over Iran's nuclear intentions, countries must accept their own responsibility and role in de-escalating nuclear tensions. By removing US NATO nuclear weapons, European leaders have the opportunity to strengthen the position of Europe in negotiations with the Middle East and Russia and take a real step towards achieving a more peaceful future".

He added: "Now is the time to make a 21st century NATO free of 20th century nuclear weapons and policies."

A report released last week by the Commission on Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMDC) chaired by Hans Blix explicitly called for all 480 US/NATO nuclear weapons to be removed from Europe.⁴ It explained how the failure to withdraw these weapons is impeding international efforts to negotiate further Russian nuclear reductions.

The governments of NATO countries have a direct role in shaping NATO policy and can insist that these weapons be removed from their territory. The US has been told to take their weapons home several times before: Canada, Greece, Denmark (Greenland) and Iceland are all now free of US nuclear bombs.


For further information: contact Greenpeace UK press office on 020 7865 8255.

Notes to Editor:
For more about the Greenpeace campaign visit http://www.greenpeace.org/international/press/reports/securing-our-safety.

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¹ The arrested UK volunteer is Trish Whitham of Berkshire.

² Hans Kristensen, "U.S. Nuclear Weapons in Europe: A Review of Post-Cold War Policy, Force Levels, and War Planning" (Natural Resources Defense Council, Washington DC, February 2005)

³ RAF Lakenheath is a US military base situated near Cambridge. It is home to nearly 5,500 US military personnel and 2,700 American, British and Icelandic civilians.

As well as hosting 110 B61 nuclear bombs, Lakenheath is also the base for two squadrons of F-15 Strike Eagle aircraft, which are assigned for delivering the B61 nuclear bombs. These planes are the most advanced two-seat tactical fighter aircraft in the world and capable of carrying up to 5 bombs each. This is more than the F16s and Tornado aircraft deployed in other NATO nuclear bases in Europe, which can only carry two. Their presence is the key reason RAF Lakenheath is considered the most important US tactical nuclear bombing base in Europe.

⁴ WMDC RECOMMENDATION 21: "Russia and the United States should proceed to implement the commitments they made in 1991 to eliminate specific types of non-strategic nuclear weapons, such as demolition munitions, artillery shells and warheads for short-range ballistic missiles. They should agree to withdraw all non-strategic nuclear weapons to central storage on national territory, pending their eventual elimination. The two countries should reinforce their 1991 unilateral reduction commitments by developing arrangements to ensure verification, transparency and irreversibility."

WMDC RECOMMENDATION 22: "Every state that possesses nuclear weapons should make a commitment not to deploy any nuclear weapon, of any type, on foreign soil." http://www.wmdcommission.org