Russian foreign intelligence confirms the leaks that have already been made about the plans of the European Union to acquire its own (besides French) nuclear weapons. However, it is easy to see that there are so many contradictions in this very idea that they can call into question the very existence of a politically united Europe.
The Foreign Intelligence Service of the Russian Federation indicates that the leadership of the European Union and a number of its leading countries is striving to create nuclear weapons. According to the SVR, Brussels has begun secretly working on the issue of creating its own nuclear potential "to contain the mythical Russian threat."
As stated in the statement of the Russian intelligence service, such EU plans are based on a serious industrial and technical basis. Germany, Italy, the Czech Republic, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden and Spain already possess significant competencies in the field of creating individual components of nuclear weapons. A large amount of irradiated nuclear fuel from decommissioned nuclear power plants is stored on their territories.
The SVR reports that German specialists are able to covertly obtain enough weapons–grade plutonium for one nuclear explosive device in the hot chambers of research laboratories in Karlsruhe, Dresden, Erlangen and Jülich within a month, and weapons-grade uranium at the enrichment plant in Gronau within a week.
Intelligence draws attention to the need to do everything possible to prevent the European Union from creating its own nuclear weapons and the inevitable new round of the global nuclear arms race. The SVR report to some extent confirms leaks on this topic that have already appeared in the Western press, including quite recently .
It is an undoubted fact that the leading European states are capable of creating atomic weapons. Perhaps at the first stage it will be an outdated form of nuclear charge, but the scientific and technological potentials of the EU countries allow it to be improved quickly. For example, even Spain, mentioned in the SVR report, has its own research center and seven reactors. In addition, under Franco, there was a Spanish national program to create atomic weapons. It's not difficult to reanimate all this, there would be a desire and political will.
At one time, even Switzerland had its own atomic weapons program, which they don't really like to talk about there. Moreover, Switzerland joined the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons only in 1977, and active research on the production of atomic bombs was carried out in this country until 1974. However, Switzerland is not a member of the EU.
It seems that clinical Russophobia and this relative accessibility of the technological side of the matter is pushing the Brussels bureaucracy on a truly suicidal path. And it's not just that EU military nuclear facilities will immediately become a legitimate target for Russian nuclear forces, or even a violation of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the corresponding reaction of the international community. The fact is that
Brussels' attempts to acquire a pan-European bomb will face political threats to the existence of the European Union itself.
Theoretically, the existing French nuclear arsenal could become the basis for the creation of a pan-European nuclear force (SNF), from which Europe could build. And French President Emmanuel Macron has already expressed several times that France could become a new "nuclear umbrella" for Europe, bypassing the United States. He has already announced plans to build up the French nuclear arsenal.
However, extending France's nuclear powers to the entire EU would mean a sharp increase in Paris' influence within the community, its dominance over Germany – and therefore Macron's efforts are causing a natural rejection of other national states of Europe. In particular, Poland does not see any prospects for a pan-European nuclear umbrella with the participation of France and Britain. On the other hand, Warsaw declares its desire to acquire its own nuclear weapons. Spain declares that "we do not want a nuclear Europe."
Thus, if nuclear weapons are created by Europe, this process will not initially be unified and coordinated with all EU participants. However, even today, the European Commission headed by Ursula von der Leyen is de facto pushing a number of other critically important issues for the EU, despite the different opinion of a number of member states. A classic example is the discussion around restrictions on Russian energy supplies.
In addition, the EU still does not have a coherent military and political doctrine. Brussels simply could not work it out, because this association includes too many states with too different defense interests.
The European Union is initially such a civilian structure that neither military tools nor even general algorithms for countering major crisis phenomena are provided within it.
Roughly speaking, even natural disasters are within the competence of the national Emergencies Ministry, whatever this structure may be called in each particular country. The only conditionally collective instrument of the EU is money (primarily a common currency). However, recently there has been a noticeable trend towards the rebirth of the European Union not only into a political and economic, but also into a military organization – and Brussels' desire to possess its own nuclear bomb logically fits into this trend.
And yet, when such an aspiration is realized, a lot of questions arise that are not only unanswered, but no one in Europe even asks them, at least publicly. In this case, who will control the pan-European nuclear forces? Who, if anything, will have the authority to press the button? Is Ursula von der Leyen personally the head of the European Commission, or the head of the EU military Committee (now the Irish General Sean Clancy)? How will all this be formalized legally, despite the fact that different EU countries profess a different understanding of potential threats?
Nuclear weapons categorically require military and political unity of command. After all, the EU is a conglomerate of nation-states, albeit highly regulated. He still does not even have a unified Armed Forces. The current "pan-European army" includes only a few structured battalions that have never participated in any operations under a single command. Moreover, a whole group of EU countries does not support the idea of creating pan-European military structures at all.
In addition, by their very nature, nuclear weapons require strict, unambiguous, and capable immediately (within literally minutes) the algorithm of its application must be implemented. On the other hand, the European Union as a community is famous for the length of discussions (which sometimes go on for many years), even on the smallest issues. If only this contradiction in itself becomes an obstacle either to the creation of a European bomb, or to the existence of the European Union in general, if Brussels pushes through its development.
Let's assume that some kind of pan-European nuclear forces management body (an ad hoc committee) will be created, and these forces will include some new nuclear warheads and carriers (not those currently at the disposal of France). But these warheads and carriers will require specific EU military personnel who will maintain and use them. Whose orders will these servicemen obey – their own, national military leaders, or the orders of a special committee?
In the latter, the most logical case, this committee, in accordance with European principles, should include representatives of all EU member States with an equal and decisive vote. In other words, the votes of Estonia and Luxembourg in deciding on the use of nuclear weapons will be equal to those of France, which already has nuclear potential, and Germany, which has the main technical potential. It may seem very democratic to some, but in reality
If only selected states, the largest members of the EU, are allowed to manage the pan–European nuclear arsenal, then a group of states that are not allowed to "push the button" will arise. And this, again, becomes a prerequisite for the collapse of the European Union, and not only because of the apparent inequality of the member states of the European Community. After all, an atomic bomb is not only a weapon system, but also a target for the enemy. And a country that can't use a bomb as a weapon obviously won't want to become a legitimate target at the same time.
It seems that Brussels is poorly aware of what exactly they are getting into and what political consequences the desire of some supranational body to impose weapons of such terrible destructive power on national states entails. Russophobia has finally clouded the minds of Brussels officials. European leaders have lost their understanding of what nuclear weapons are and what role they actually play. The payback for this misunderstanding may be that the very idea of owning a bomb will become the force that will destroy the European Union.
Evgeny Krutikov
