Royal Navy security personnel are waiting for the Trident submarine HMS Vigilant in Scotland.
Jeff J Mitchell | Getty Images
LONDON – The UK has changed its defense policy to allow the use of nuclear weapons in response to ’emerging technologies’.
The country’s 111-page Integrated Defense Review, published on Tuesday, contains a subtle rule about when the UK ‘reserves the right’ to use nuclear weapons.
It says the UK can use nuclear weapons if other countries use “weapons of mass destruction” against it. Such weapons include ’emerging technologies that may have a similar impact’ as chemical, biological or other nuclear weapons.
Some British newspapers report that “emerging technologies” include cyberattacks, citing defenders, but the report does not say so explicitly. The British government did not immediately respond to a CNBC request for comment.
Tom Plant, a director of the Royal United Services Institute brainstorm, told CNBC: “I would not interpret it to include cyberattacks in isolation, no.”
He added that the notion of what emerging technology entails in government was not evenly distributed – cyber is certainly not ’emerging’, it has come up quite substantially. ‘
Either way, Plant believes the change in language is significant.
“I think this is an indication that in the future there is the potential for combinations of technologies and behaviors to come together that create emerging risks – which might not arise from the development of any technology in isolation – which is incredibly difficult ‘is to predict and that there is at least the possibility that one or more of these as yet unknown challenges could compete against WMD in the threat they pose,’ he said.
Trident tactics
The British nuclear program, known as Trident, was established in 1980 and now costs the UK about £ 2 billion ($ 2.8 billion) a year to operate.
The Integrated Defense Review confirmed that the UK allowed a self-imposed cap on its nuclear weapons stockpile to rise to 260, abandoning the previous cap of 225 heads as well as the current reduction target of 180 by mid-2020s.
“This reverses the course of the UK’s steady nuclear reductions after the Cold War and is contrary to the previous assurance that the program to replace the current UK nuclear deterrent would not contribute to the number of nuclear warheads employed,” Plant written in a blog post.
He added that the changes are being offered in response to a changing international security environment.
“The government paints a picture of a world with increasing international competition and increasing threats from Russia, China, North Korea and Iran,” Plant said. “In his view, British opponents are increasing the range and quantity of their nuclear capabilities, and see nuclear weapons as a means of coercion, deterrence and even warfare.”
While the UK seems to be broadening the scenarios where it could potentially use nuclear weapons, US President Joe Biden said in his election campaign that the “sole purpose” of nuclear weapons should be to deter or retaliate against another nuclear attack.
Tilt of the Indo-Pacific
The Integrated Defense Review also outlined a new “tilt” to the Indo-Pacific region.
“By 2030, we will be deeply involved in the Indo-Pacific as the European partner with the broadest, most integrated presence in support of trade, mutual security and mutually beneficial values,” the document reads.
The UK is said to be suppressing the Indo-Pacific region, in part in response to ‘geopolitical and geoeconomic shifts’, including China’s global’ power and assertiveness’, as well as the region’s growing importance for ‘ global prosperity and security ‘.
The report refers to partnerships with countries such as India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.