May defends UK nuclear arms as parliament votes on renewal

Demonstrators hold placards as they attend an anti-war and anti-trident demonstration near the Houses of Parliament in central London on Monday. (AFP)

LONDON: British lawmakers voted Monday on whether to replace the country’s fleet of nuclear-armed submarines, a powerful but expensive symbol of the country’s military status.
The Conservative government is determined to maintain Britain’s nuclear deterrent, which consists of four Royal Navy submarines armed with Trident missiles. It says replacing the aging submarines, in service since the 1990s, will cost up to 41 billion pounds ($54 billion) over 20 years.
In her first address to Parliament since taking office last week, Prime Minister Theresa May didn’t hesitate when an opposition lawmaker asked the toughest question for any leader of a nuclear state: Would she be willing to order a nuclear strike? “Yes,” May said.
The debate has stirred strong emotions — and split the opposition Labour Party. May said “the nuclear threat has not gone away; if anything, it has increased,” with a newly assertive Russia and a desire from countries including North Korea to acquire nuclear weapons in defiance of the international community.
May said that although Britain has voted to leave the European Union, “we will not leave our NATO and European allies behind.
“We cannot outsource the grave responsibility we shoulder for keeping our people safe,” she said.