His Excellency the British Ambassador,
The British Embassy¬Ý
29 Merrion Road
Dublin 4
January 2007¬Ý
Dear Sir
Following the announcement last month by the British Prime Minister of his government's intention to pursue a programme of replacement for Britain's submarine-based Trident nuclear missile system, we wish to register our disappointment and our opposition to this move.
We welcome Mr Blair's plans to reduce Britain's nuclear weapons stockpile by 20%, as well as the possible 25% reduction in the number of nuclear submarines. We also respect Mr Blair's acknowledgement of arguments contrary to the position he has taken.¬Ý
Nevertheless, we are unconvinced by his arguments in favour of investing in a continued nuclear armoury, and we believe that this decision does not serve the goal of world peace and does not enhance Britain's international status.¬Ý
In his speech to the House of Commons, Mr Blair referred to the power of countries to lead by example, but does not believe that unilateral steps towards disarmament by his government would have any positive impact. We would urge the British government, on the contrary, to take this step in the context of working all the more strenuously with other nuclear and would-be nuclear powers towards multilateral disarmament. Mr Blair's government has set a courageous example in areas such as global poverty and climate change; we believe this is a missed opportunity to adopt another highly significant agenda with far-reaching consequences in terms of global security and peace.
Yours truly,
Back to Irish CND page on nuclear weapons