What to do about Europe's secret nukes

Nuclear bombs are stored on air force bases in Italy, Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands. The Federation of American Scientists (FAS)  estimates that there are some 200 B61 thermonuclear gravity bombs scattered across these four countries. Under a NATO agreement struck during the Cold War, the bombs, which are technically owned by the U.S., can be transferred to the control of a host nation's air force in times of conflict. 

As recently as December 2008, the Secretary of Defense Task Force on Nuclear Weapons Management said the weapons were an important guarantee of NATO security and also supported nonproliferation efforts by preventing allied states from developing their own weapons programs.  These justifications infuriated arms control experts, who pointed out that NATO countries continue to be protected by the hundreds of land- and submarine-based long-range nuclear-tipped missiles.
 
"The nuclear umbrella can be continued by long-range forces just like it was in the Pacific after [nuclear] weapons were withdrawn from South Korea in 1991," says Hans Kristensen of FAS, who closely monitors nuclear weapons in Europe.

 

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