THE future of the Trident nuclear weapons programme is “up for grabs”, a UK government official is reported as saying last week.
Controversial plans to renew the joint look likely to be discussed at Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty talks next May. The UK has postponed awarding design contracts for it until afterwards. “All our deterrent is now up for grabs but in the context of a multilateral negotiation,” the unnamed official
This is the clearest indication yet that the UK is willing to consider scaling back its plans to replace Trident. Paul Ingram of the , a think tank in London and Washington DC, sees this as a significant policy shift. “This sends a signal that the UK is willing to put its nuclear weapons on the table.”
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