French and British nuclear forces in an era of uncertainty
- Centre d`Etudes des Relations entre Technologies et Strategies, Paris (France)
Britain and France have always been considered as special players in the nuclear deterrence game. Their respective arsenals have never exceeded a very small fraction of the USSR`s and the United States strategic forces; Britain`s and France`s rationales for having nuclear weapons have been based on criteria tailored specifically for medium nuclear powers. Moreover, in sharp contrast with both superpowers, the development costs of the French and British nuclear forces have been very high, penalizing conventional forces in the case of France and leading to a growing dependence on the United States in the case of the United Kingdom (UK). Finally, although Paris and London have been able to draw advantages from the possession of nuclear forces, they have never been in a position to offer an explicit nuclear guarantee to their European allies, thus leaving the United States as the sole provider of extended deterrence within the framework of the integrated military structure of the Atlantic alliance. The unchallenged nuclear preponderance of Moscow and Washington was a powerful instrument of influence in world affairs during the East-West confrontation. Accordingly, debates on deterrence have always been expressed in terms and concepts designed by Washington and never explicitly rejected by Moscow. On the contrary, terms and concepts similar to those used in France are now utilized by a new generation of Russian strategic analysts to argue for a redefinition of Russia`s deterrence posture. Today, however, this mechanism of control through preponderance is severely affected because it is likely that the function of nuclear deterrence will be reassessed in the new security environment prevailing after the end of the Cold War. Meanwhile, the prospect of a new world order leads the Western nuclear states to redefine their nuclear doctrine and restructure their strategic forces. 24 refs.
- OSTI ID:
- 105173
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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