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Are American nuclear weapons returning to the United Kingdom?

Retrieved on:

Thursday, February 8, 2024

Conventional weapon, Antique car, Telegraphy, Scientist, Perception, Hostility, Federation, Bomb, Environment, Aircraft, High, Anglo-French Wars, Pentagon, Pressure, Uranium mining

In August 2023, nuclear weapons researchers Matt Korda and Hans Kristensen of the Federation of American Scientists reported it was increasingly apparent the United States was upgrading its Lakenheath military base in the United Kingdom.

Key Points:

In August 2023, nuclear weapons researchers Matt Korda and Hans Kristensen of the Federation of American Scientists reported it was increasingly apparent the United States was upgrading its Lakenheath military base in the United Kingdom.
This base hosted American nuclear weapons in the past, which raises questions about whether they’re returning.
Through these arrangements, the U.S. has stationed some of its nuclear weapons on its allies’ territory since the early days of the Cold War.

Hosting American nukes

At its height in the 1960s, 13 states hosted American nuclear weapons at the same time, including Canada.
Yet in the last few decades, this number has gradually dwindled to only five NATO members: Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Turkey.
The nuclear weapons hosted by the five participants are B61 gravity bombs and can be delivered by aircraft, such as German and Italian Tornados, F-22s and the newer American F-35s.

High international threat environment

Russia’s war against Ukraine has fundamentally altered the international security environment.
Whereas the post-Cold War security environment had made NATO members question the relevance of nuclear sharing, recent events have reignited the debate on the alliance’s nuclear capabilities.
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, that is no longer the case: consensus among nuclear sharing participants has been strengthened.
In a forthcoming research article in International Affairs, we surmise this kind of reinforcement or expansion of nuclear sharing could be the result of the Ukraine war and the changing threat perception of NATO members, which has slowed down the political momentum of anti-nuclear voices.

Nuclear sharing remains contentious

Ever since the 2000s, there has been considerable pressure coming from citizens in NATO nations to withdraw from nuclear sharing.
Much like any other political arrangement, however, NATO’s nuclear sharing arrangement can be contentious and subject to renegotiations, as shown by Poland’s demands to also host American nuclear weapons.

Émile Lambert-Deslandes receives funding from the Department of National Defence's MINDS program and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. Stéfanie von Hlatky has received funding from the NATO Science For Peace and Security Programme for research on Women, Peace, and Security.

Five things that the west doesn't understand about China's foreign policy

Retrieved on:

Monday, October 2, 2023

But often western reactions to a Chinese decision can come from a lack of understanding of Beijing’s motivations.

Key Points:

But often western reactions to a Chinese decision can come from a lack of understanding of Beijing’s motivations.
With this in mind, here are five things that the west often gets wrong about Chinese foreign policy.

1. It’s not a grand scheme

In the western media, Chinese foreign policy has often been seen as a grand scheme to secure world leadership.
However, Chinese policy is not quite the labyrinthine plot that it has often been presented as.
Chinese foreign policy has largely been devised in response to recent developments rather than being a long-term scheme for domination.

2. China deals with democracies

The Chinese model of economic development has racheted up fears of China attempting to spread its political system beyond its national borders.
But, some of the biggest advocates of the China model have been the political elites in developing nations, many of whom have a colonial history, and who appreciate that China offers an alternative to the west in attracting investment.

3. China’s role in the world order

One of the most common depictions of China in recent years has been of it as a revisionist power that seeks to overthrow the liberal rules-based world order and international bodies.
Such an image was popularised by Graham Allison’s 2017 book Destined for War, which warned of a China seeking to overthrow US domination.

4. China’s historical experience

But China draws on a different history, one that includes its own dominant position internationally, but also its defeat and occupation.
Beijing references this past when talking of the “Century of Humiliation” (1839-1949), a period when China was dominated and occupied by colonial powers.
The Silk Road refers to an historical network of highly lucrative trade routes linking a powerful China to the rest of the world, and used to sell its products for centuries.

5. The appeal of Chinese aid

China’s financial aid and investment projects in developing countries are sometimes portrayed as simply bribing corrupt states or ensnaring them with “debt trap diplomacy”.
While these images have been popular in western media coverage of Chinese foreign policy, they overlook the role of the country receiving aid to choose to accept Chinese finance and how this also appeals as an alternative to western aid packages which traditionally come with many conditions relating to governance.

Talk of a new Cold War is overheated – but NZ faces complex challenges in the era of ‘strategic competition’

Retrieved on:

Monday, August 28, 2023

As the general election nears, the campaign focus so far has been almost exclusively on domestic issues.

Key Points:

As the general election nears, the campaign focus so far has been almost exclusively on domestic issues.
And yet, over the past two months, no fewer than five government documents have been released outlining the significant defence and security challenges the country now faces.
That assessment matches other national security reports, defence reviews and Indo-Pacific strategies released in the past 12 months by Australia, Germany, Japan, Britain and South Korea.

No new Cold War

Unlike the Soviet Union, which dominated Eastern Europe after the second world war, Russia cannot even secure victory against a state on its periphery.
Read more:
NZ’s first national security strategy signals a 'turning point' and the end of old certainties
At the same time, the US relationship with China is fundamentally different from its Cold War relationship with the Soviet Union.
During the Cold War, the Soviet Union and the US had formidable global alliance systems.

The rise of ‘strategic competition’

It will shape the character and rules of the international system for the 21st century and beyond.
China is a formidable competitor seeking to balance US power, not least in the Indo-Pacific, the powerhouse of the world economy.
Essentially, the US view is that alliances and partnerships will determine the course of world politics, even more than during the Cold War.

Washington needs allies

The first involves the objective decline in US power since the 2008 global financial crisis and the rise of its allies and partners.
The stability and fortunes of the international order that Washington has constructed will increasingly hinge on the willingness of those allies and partners to defend key principles that underpin the system.

Speaking truth to power

These countries are critical in sustaining the existing economic and political order, and expect US restraint in its defence of it.
An enlightened understanding of America’s own national interest is consistent with those expectations.
For example, most reasonable observers in the US would now agree with the Helen Clark government’s position of “speaking truth to power” in not backing the invasion of Iraq in 2003.

The defence dilemma facing NZ's next government: stay independent or join 'pillar 2' of AUKUS?

Retrieved on:

Wednesday, August 23, 2023

But good strategy in global politics has proved easier said than done.

Key Points:

But good strategy in global politics has proved easier said than done.
It’s an urgent question the next government will need to think about very carefully before deciding.

The means and ends of AUKUS

Read more:
AUKUS is already trialling autonomous weapons systems – where is NZ's policy on next-generation warfare?
But, to date, AUKUS leaders have failed to make a sustained public case for how the means and ends of this security pact fit together.

New Zealand and AUKUS

Initially, non-nuclear New Zealand was not involved in AUKUS.
In late July, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken reaffirmed the “door is open” for New Zealand to engage with AUKUS.

A complex global picture

Read more:
NZ’s first national security strategy signals a 'turning point' and the end of old certainties
But this is an incomplete picture.
China is an authoritarian state with global ambitions, but these should not be overblown.
The country’s rise to superpower status has been built on an outstanding trade performance in the global capitalist economy.

Nuclear politics

Also, a number of those states have criticised AUKUS for potentially fuelling nuclear proliferation through the Australian submarine deal.
The region is already home to the 1986 South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone and the 1995 Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone treaties.

NZ independence on the line

New Zealand shares a great deal politically with Australia, the UK and US, and it is important Wellington boosts its defence capabilities.
It does little to advance its independent foreign policy interests, including a core commitment to strengthen the international rules-based order.

Textile queen Maman Creppy has died: the last of West Africa's legendary wax cloth traders has left her mark

Retrieved on:

Tuesday, June 20, 2023

Dédé Rose Gamélé Creppy, who has died aged 89, was one of west Africa’s most influential wax cloth traders.

Key Points:

Dédé Rose Gamélé Creppy, who has died aged 89, was one of west Africa’s most influential wax cloth traders.
She was the youngest, and the last living, “Nana Benz” – the legendary first generation of women cloth traders from Togo.
Wax cloth was a European adaptation of a classic Indonesian batik hand printing technique which created designs using hot wax.
The cloth was introduced to west Africa by Dutch and English textile manufacturers in the late 19th century.

From beads to cloth

So, once she had acquired a small trading stock, she switched to cloth.
As Maman Creppy accumulated more capital, she switched to English wax-prints from Arnold Brunnschweiler & Company (ABC) and later to Dutch wax cloth from Vlisco.
Maman Creppy became a Nana Benz – one of the super-wholesalers of wax cloth.

Nana Benzes boom

Nana Benzes therefore became a key part of the wax print trade and enabled the Dutch to penetrate other African markets.
The Nana Benzes also had a monopoly over patterns – many of them unique.
It was their effective monopoly over pattern rights that garnered the Nana Benzes unparalleled wealth.
The Nana Benzes soon established distribution rights for these classic designs from colonial firms, such as Unilever’s United Africa Company (UAC).

The downfall

The end of the Cold War and the democracy movement that liberalised political and economic spaces had serious consequences for the cloth trade.
A devaluation of the CFA franc (by 50%) in 1994 turned an everyday consumer good, wax cloth, into a near luxury almost overnight.
To add to the demise of the Nana Benzes, Chinese counterfeits entered the market in the early 2000s.

Maman Creppy’s legacy

Like many of her older peers, Maman Creppy was married but lived independently with her children, whom she would later send to study in France; she owned a property in Lyon.
The legacy of Dédé Rose Gamélé Creppy is preserved in her daughter’s work.

Global Times: New book reviews struggles, engagements between N.Korea and US

Retrieved on:

Monday, April 17, 2023

Over the following three decades until their historic summit in Singapore and Hanoi, the two countries have experienced a series of struggles and engagements.

Key Points:

Over the following three decades until their historic summit in Singapore and Hanoi, the two countries have experienced a series of struggles and engagements.
An Asymmetric Game: The Thirty Years of US-DPRK Relations (1988-2018) is a valuable academic work that fills this blank.
"This made me determined to start working on this research and write such a book," he noted.
There are many interesting points in this book, Dong shared with the Global Times.

Find Out More About Antique Car Insurance And Its Benefits

Retrieved on:

Saturday, July 27, 2019

Economy, Conservation and restoration of vehicles, Service industries, Finance, Insurance, Insurance industry, Antique car, Vehicle insurance, Vehicle insurance in the United States

In order to protect their investments, antique car owners can purchase car insurance from big known insurers or from smaller specialized insurers.

Key Points:

In order to protect their investments, antique car owners can purchase car insurance from big known insurers or from smaller specialized insurers.
Before purchasing car insurance, antique car owners should consider the following:
Determine if the car is an antique.
In order to obtain antique car coverage, antique car owners must be at least 25 years old and have a clean driving record.
Some providers will require the antique car owner to have an additional vehicle that is a daily driver and regular car insurance.

Santa Cruz County Man Sentenced for Vehicle Theft and Forgery People v Martin Avila: Case No. SS170185A

Retrieved on:

Saturday, February 23, 2019

Geography of California, Ávila, Monterey County, California, Antique car, Monterey, California, California

As reported, People of the State of California vs. Avila, Martin Roy: Case No.

Key Points:

As reported, People of the State of California vs. Avila, Martin Roy: Case No.
SS170185A, between the months of May and June 2015, Avila stole three antique cars from the ranch property of the late Sherman Ball who was a resident of Monterey County.
Immediately after Mr. Ball had passed away in May 2015, Avila went to the Ball ranch in Royal Oaks and removed a 1960 Ford truck.
He then filed false documents with the California Department of Motor Vehicles to have the cars registered in his name.