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Would nuclear weapons become obsolete in the UK if we were unable, to singlehandedly, repel an invasion?
Or do we have nuclear missiles because of the very fact that we couldn't?
Or are nuclear weapons obsolete because the majority of conflicts that involve UK military are beginning to be against terrorism and terrorist organisations rather than individual states?
I like your answer Larry R, but how do you threaten to retaliate against a group or organisation that doesn't speak for a nation? For example, Al Qaeda. A threat of retaliation would be met with complete nonchalance because they would know that a nuclear attack by the UK on any individual state would not change their will to succeed whilst turning world opinion against the UK for killing millions of innocent people as a response to a threat from a select group of extremists.
4 Answers
- Larry RLv 61 decade agoFavorite Answer
The UK has nuclear weapons "just in case".
Lots of things happen in life that nobody anticipates. WW I was "the war to end all wars" and as you can see that didn't work out very well. The British Empire was supposed to last forever... and that didn't work out either. On Sept. 10th 2001 who thought that the USA would invade Afgahanistan six weeks later because someone would hijack planes and crash them into the World Trade Center?
There is the possibility that someday, someone will call up the PM and say "Surrender now or we nuke all your cities." Might be the Chinese, might be the Yanks, might be the Russians, might be the United Moslem Calaphate.
If the UK does not have nukes then the PM would have to respond "Yes sir. How would you like me to turn over the UK to you? and when do you want me to surrender by?" and the UK vanishes into the mists of history, along with Rome and Constantinople and the Holy Roman Empire.
If the UK DOES have nukes the PM will be able to respond " I don't think you really want to try that, because if you do try that, and we turn your homeland into one large sheet of radioactive glass." and the freedom and independence of the UK continues.
The nukes are an insurance policy. It is likely that this day will never come...but on Nov. 11 1918 who would have thought that Sept. 1 1939 would be coming so soon after?
- ?Lv 51 decade ago
No. Other countries have nuclear weapon capability. And the fact that the technology is out there means some idiot, at some point would pose a threat. Unfortunately.
- 1 decade ago
They will not be obsolete until no one else has them, and then they will not be.