NATO: French Nuclear Weapons Debate
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Lord Cromwell
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NATO: French Nuclear Weapons
Lord Cromwell Excerpts(6 months, 2 weeks ago)
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Lord Cromwell (CB)
My Lords, is the Minister as shocked as I am to hear a Question from the noble Lord that does not include the word “frigates”?
Lord Cromwell (CB)
More seriously, does NATO agree that there is such a thing as a tactical nuclear weapon, which is referred to by the President of Russia? I do not believe it does, but could he enlighten us?
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con)
My Lords I fear that the noble Lord might be tempting the noble Lord, Lord West, to come in again. On his serious point, we need to be very clear that loose language is extremely dangerous in any context, and it is particularly dangerous at the current time. We need responsibility and real recognition—and the NPT treaty was signed by Russia in 2022, but it then went to war in Ukraine a month later. We must make sure those principles are upheld by all responsible powers across the world, and those who do not need to be challenged quite directly.