Christine Shawcroft calls for support for CND’s demonstration in opposition to Trump’s nukes in Britain, arguing we are no longer a sovereign state. Britain looks more and more like a puppet of the United States. Never forget, she warns, from Washington, no one can hear you scream.
A national demonstration outside ‘RAF’ Lakenheath in Suffolk has been called for Saturday, 20th September, against the suspected deployment of US nuclear weapons – Trump’s nukes! Actually, the title ‘USAF’ would be a more suitable name for the base, as it is run by the US Air Force and, at the moment, only hosts USAF units and personnel.
Our own government attempts to keep activities at the base shrouded in secrecy, and we only found out about the US government’s plans when campaigners saw a US Department of Defence document which included the UK on a list of nuclear weapons storage locations in Europe.
Since then, observers in July tracked a transport plane flying from the US main nuclear storage site in New Mexico to the Suffolk base, and it is believed that B61-12 nuclear bombs have now been deployed at Lakenheath. This is the first time US nukes have been stationed here since 2008. The base had previously hosted US nuclear weapons for more than 50 years, starting in 1954. Not only does the return of US weapons of mass destruction to British soil ramp up international tensions and make south east England into a target in the event of the war with Russia on which NATO seems so keen, the local community is also in danger from the risk of accidents involving the nukes.
Lakenheath has previous on this. In 1956 a B-47 bomber on a routine training mission crashed into a nuclear weapons store, killing four servicemen. Both the US and British governments tried to cover it up, but official US documents were eventually found which stated that it was a ‘miracle’ that none of the bombs exploded, and that part of eastern England could have become ‘a desert’. In 1961, a plane with a nuclear bomb on board caught fire. The bomb itself was scorched by fire, and scientific investigators found that it could easily have detonated. And those are just two accidents that we have found out about, as the governments concerned admitted them – but only in 1979 and 2003, respectively.
There may have been other serious incidents which have yet to come to light, and even more worryingly, CND has discovered that US forces have been given a blanket exemption from major safety regulations when operating in the UK. They are not legally bound to have plans to deal with emergencies involving radioactive material and nuclear weapons. Yet there are several population centres in the region which could be put in deadly danger by any accidental leaks of radiation, not to mention the risks of larger nuclear accidents.
Over 60% of British people are opposed to US nuclear weapons returning to British bases. A government which puts out documents stating that their main objective is the safety of the population and ‘national security’ should be expected to come clean about what is happening. Unfortunately, our government prefers secrecy and will neither confirm nor deny developments when campaigners attempt to shed light on the risks they are running. Needless to say there has been no debate in Parliament, and certainly no vote.
It is the definition of a sovereign country that it should have an independent foreign policy. By this measure, Britain is no longer a sovereign state and looks more and more like a puppet of the United States. Never forget – from Washington, no one can hear you scream.
* You can find information about the demonstration, including transport arrangements here.
* This article was first published in Labour Outlook