Dutch F-35A fighters stationed at Volkel Air Base have been adapted to carry and launch US B61 nuclear bombs, Dutch Air Force Combat Aviation Commander Johan van Deventer said on message service X.
The announcement of the Netherlands’ preliminary operational capability with nuclear weapons was expected. The Netherlands has long taken part in NATO’s nuclear deterrence burden sharing. The type of plane capable of carrying nuclear bombs is just being replaced by a new one – the Netherlands is deploying new F-35A stealth fighters and handing over part of its aging F-16 planes to Ukraine.
Like the Netherlands, Finland is a small NATO country. Unlike the Netherlands, Finland is still looking for its role in NATO’s nuclear weapons policy and deterrence.
There are no reservations. The government has announced that Finland will take part in the work of NATO’s nuclear deterrence planning group NPG and may also participate in NATO’s nuclear weapons exercises.
Finding your place in the nuclear weapons alliance is not easy. The area is completely new for Finland, which has traditionally supported arms control, arms restrictions and the NPT treaty limiting the spread of nuclear weapons in its foreign and security policy. Security has been sought in pursuit of a world where the number of nuclear weapons decreases. […]
According to Pesu, non-nuclear-weapon countries of NATO and allies outside the DCA agreements with the United States can support nuclear weapons operations in a wider range of ways than before: for example, with medical and other maintenance, cyber, intelligence and long-range conventional weapons. However, the exact plans or arrangements are not disclosed to the public. […]
The highest level of ambition would include all of the above and would also involve Finland in the practical arrangements for burden sharing – to certify some of the Air Force’s new F-35A aircraft as nuclear-capable. The Finnish government has not shown any desire for this and NATO is not offering nuclear weapons to Finland, but it has not been ruled out by treaty either.
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