US nuclear arsenal upgrade scourges Europe, world

美国升级核武库:坑害欧洲,祸乱世界

Source
China Military Online
Editor
Li Weichao
Time
2022-11-10 16:35:40

By Li Jiabao

李嘉宝

According to a report by American magazine Politico, American officials told their NATO allies in Europe in a recent closed-door meeting in Brussels, Belgium that they will accelerate the deployment of the enhanced nuclear bomb B61-12 at multiple NATO bases across Europe. Britain’s The Guardian reported that the national defense budget document for the fiscal year of 2023 submitted by the Biden administration to the US Congress planned to allocate US$384 million to upgrade America’s nuclear storage facilities in six NATO member states – the UK, Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Türkiye– to enable them to deploy B61-12.

据美国《政治报》报道,在日前比利时布鲁塞尔举行的一场闭门会议期间,美国官员告诉北约欧洲盟友,美方将加速向欧洲多座北约基地部署“升级版”核弹B61—12。据英国《卫报》报道,拜登政府此前提交给美国国会的2023财年国防预算文件显示,美国计划投入3.84亿美元,对位于英国、比利时、德国、意大利、荷兰和土耳其等6个北约成员国的核弹存储设施进行升级改造,使其具备部署B61—12型核弹的能力。

The B61-12 nuclear bomb is the latest version of America’s B61 series of tactical nuclear bombs and a key member of its future tactical nuclear attack system. The US side’s evasiveness cannot hide its obvious intention of upgrading the nuclear arsenal in Europe, and its accelerated deployment of new tactical nuclear weapons amid the ongoing geopolitical conflict now will incur dire consequences in many ways.

B61—12型核弹是美国B61系列战术核弹的最新型号,也是未来美军战术核打击体系的核心武器之一。无论美方如何闪烁其词,其意欲升级欧洲核武库已是“司马昭之心”。在地缘冲突持续的当下,美国在欧洲加速部署新型战术核武器,会带来多方面恶劣后果。

First, it will further escalate the Russia-Ukraine conflict that’s currently in a logjam. The Russia-Ukraine conflict is the greatest security crisis for Europe after WWII, and the essential reason for the conflict is that the US and NATO, regardless of Russia’s security concerns, have been aggressively squeezing its security space, stirring up conflicts between the two countries, and splitting Europe. Intense and risky as the current situation is, the US, driven by its so-called “major country competition” strategy, has continued to pour fuel on flames by upgrading its arsenal in Europe and escalating the nuclear confrontation with Russia. Russian ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov said lately that nuclear states shoulder the special responsibility for preventing an escalation of the situation, and the US should bring back home all its nuclear weapons stationed overseas.

一是促使本就胶着的俄乌冲突进一步升级。俄乌冲突是二战后欧洲面临的最大安全危机。美国及北约不顾俄罗斯安全关切,一步步挤压俄安全空间、挑拨俄乌矛盾、制造欧洲分裂,是导致危机爆发的关键原因。然而,在局势紧张、风险迭出的现阶段,美国在所谓“大国竞争”战略驱使下,继续变本加厉,升级在欧洲的武器库,蓄意升级与俄罗斯的核对抗,无疑是给俄乌冲突火上浇油。俄驻美大使阿纳托利•安东诺夫近日指出,有核国家承担着防止局势升级的特殊责任,美国应将所有部署在境外的核武器撤回本土。

Second, it will aggravate the risk of nuclear proliferation both in Europe and worldwide. The B61-12 bomb is equipped with the newest precision-guided empennage components and a new type of navigation system with a Circular Error Probability (CEP) of allegedly no more than 30m. It is designed to be able to load on the fighters and bombers of the US itself and other NATO members. Jessica Cox, Chief of NATO’s nuclear policy directorate, said the commissioning of more F-35 fighters will enhance NATO members’ capability of interoperability and tactical nuclear attacks. More dangerously, the low-yield warheads carried by B61-12 have largely lowered the threshold of using nuclear weapons, adding to the risk of their use in real combat. America’s deployment in Europe will crank up the nuclear risk on the continent, generating extremely negative impacts on Europe’s and the world’s strategic security and stability as well as the international arms control system.

二是加剧欧洲乃至全球的“核扩散”风险。B61—12型核弹安装全新精确制导尾翼组件和新型制导系统,圆概率误差据称不超过30米。按照设计,该核弹能够由美国和其他北约成员国的战斗机和轰炸机携带。北约核政策局局长考克斯称,更多批次F—35战斗机的列装,将使北约成员国强化联合作战能力和战术核打击能力。更危险的是,B61—12型核弹携带当量较小的核弹头,使核武器的使用门槛大大降低,导致实战中使用的风险进一步增强。美国在欧洲进行相关部署,将使欧洲“核风险”进一步上升,给欧洲乃至全球战略安全与稳定、国际军控体系都带来严重的消极影响。

Third, it exposes American selfishness as the upgrade of tactical nuclear weapons in Europe comes at the expense of European and global security. America’s deployment is partly to enhance Europe’s nuclear combat capability to deter Russia and partly to tighten the nuclear control over the continent to derail its defense independence efforts. Behind the move are America’s deep-rooted Cold War mindset and hegemonistic logic at play. Its recently released 2022 Nuclear Posture Review is rife with the narrow and extreme hegemonistic mentality – it reaffirmed the plan to upgrade the current nuclear bombs into the more intelligent and precise B61-12s and to use the F-35A stealth fighter jet as a dual-capability aircraft, and imagined conflicts with major nuclear states.

三是以欧洲及全球安全为代价升级在欧洲战术核武器,美国的自私暴露无遗。美国此举一方面强化了在欧洲的核作战能力,进而威慑俄罗斯;另一方面是趁机加强对欧洲的核控制力,打乱欧洲防卫自主进程。说到底,还是根深蒂固的冷战思维和霸权逻辑在作祟。美国近日发布的《2022年核态势审议报告》再次明确提出,将把目前部署的核弹升级为更智能、更精确的B61-12核弹,同时将F—35A隐形战斗机作为“双重能力战斗机”使用,并假想与核大国发生冲突的情况,充斥着狭隘又极端的霸权思维。

A nuclear war must not be fought. No one will come out of it a winner. The UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned that “humanity is just one misunderstanding, one miscalculation away from nuclear annihilation”. America’s obsession with upgrading its nuclear arsenal will bring nothing but disaster to Europe and the world in general.

核战争打不得,更不会有什么赢家。联合国秘书长古特雷斯曾发出警告,人类与核武器毁灭世界之间只隔了“一个误解”或“一个误判”。美国执迷于升级核武库,不仅坑害了欧洲,更是在祸乱世界。 

Editor's note: Originally published on paper.people.com.cn, this article is translated from Chinese into English and edited by the China Military Online. The information and opinions in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of eng.chinamil.com.cn.

 

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