The hypothesis that France might one day harbor a British strategic maritime force has been cited in recent times by a very serious British daily financial Times In a series of articles referring to the “secret contingency plan to move its Trident nuclear submarine bases from Scotland to the United States or France” in the event of independence from its northern neighbour.
Cooperation between the two navies is believed to have “reached an extraordinary level,” said Admirals Pierre Vandier and Tony Radakin in Toulon this summer. However, experts on both sides of the channel say that such a move has never been subject to change.
an impossible scenario
Our deep-water warfare port, whose facilities are dimensioned to the limit and enclosed in the urban fabric, to accommodate four Vanguard class Nuclear Missile Launching Submarines (SSBNs) and seven Sub-Nuclear Assault Navy (ANS) Miracles must be done. Three Old Trafalgar and four Recent Astutes are located in Faslane, 40 km from Glasgow on the west coast of Scotland.
It will also be necessary to have surface buildings and aircraft that secure their movements, logistics and maintenance, the sites of the last three estuaries under construction, and all personnel. Assume that the Americans authorize the transfer of their tactical nuclear missiles Trident, which equip Vanguard, whose weapons they supervise, at Colport, unlike Faslane. Impossible!
David Cameron’s Gift
The scenario of Scotland’s future independence, to him, was so credible, London ordered, in 2010, a study on the fate of Faslain in this case: “Trident Alternative Review”. In 2013, its authors concluded that the US had no choice but to reject the option. This would deprive the British ANS of their proximity to the North Atlantic routes, again very frequently visited by Russian submarines, which they monitor alongside their French counterparts. This explains why Faslane is also a major NATO pawn; Twice a year, it conducts its “Joint Warrior” naval exercise there.
In 2014, Prime Minister David Cameron, who, like the Scottish government, was campaigning against Brexit, later made an election gift by deciding to repatriate Faslane to the ANS stationed at Plymouth, and some shipyards on the south coast. The second largest employer in Scotland, Aadhar now invests 310 million euros per year in its economy. In the event of independence, there would undoubtedly be an agreement with the Independence Party, the SNP. The latter, which rules in Edinburgh with the anti-nuclear Greens, has no interest in rushing this vote.
Like British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, until economic recovery is confirmed. He is the de facto target of articles in the anti-Brexit elite newspaper. This affair came to the fore in the midst of the ongoing controversy over the US withdrawal from Afghanistan. “Bojo”, who claimed his “special relationship” with Washington, would be ready to keep Her Majesty’s deterrent power in France…
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