Government and Military

Stephen Willmer, Assistant Director

Proliferation and Arms Control Secretariat

Ministry of Defence

Room 9152, Main Building, Whitehall, London, SW1A 2HB

2 March 2000

Dear Ms Zelter,

Thank you for your further letter to the Prime Minister of 11 February, concerning the legality of Trident. I have been asked to reply.

The threshold for legitimate use of nuclear weapons clearly is, and should be, a very high one. But it is only possible to determine the legality of any specific use of nuclear weapons in the light of all the circumstances prevailing at the time that use is being considered. Any such determination would take into account the consequences of use of a particular nuclear weapon at a specific time and place. However, an action that is legal in one set of circumstances can be illegal in different circumstances. The Government continues to believe that there is no useful benefit to be gained from hypothetical speculation on where precisely the dividing line would lie. Nor does the Government believe that any conceptual planning on potential use of nuclear weapons carried out by the Ministry of Defence can reasonably be made open to public scrutiny. Secrecy in this area plays an important part in enabling the United Kingdom to maintain a credible minimum deterrent capability at the lowest possible level. As you are aware, the Government is confident that the United Kingdom’s minimum nuclear deterrent is consistent with international law.

You again asked for a meeting. I can only repeat, as previous letters have made clear, that the Government does not believe it would be right to arrange meetings such as you have requested while Trident Ploughshares is not prepared to confine itself to legitimate and peaceful means of protest.

Yours sincerely,

Stephen Willmer

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