Washington sends nuclear signal to Moscow with UK deployment

The United States has likely deployed additional nuclear weapons to Britain for the first time since 2008, sending a signal to Russian leader Vladimir Putin about its commitment to European security.

Bloomberg reported the news, CE Report quotes Ukrinform.

On July 16, a U.S. C-17 military transport aircraft with its transponder turned on, allowing it to be tracked, flew from a U.S. nuclear depot at Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque, New Mexico, to an airbase in the British city of Royal Air Force Lakenheath.

Previously, this aircraft only flew over U.S. territory as part of the Prime Nuclear Airlift Force (PNAF), which is responsible for the air transport of nuclear weapons components, including warheads.

Britain is one of five nuclear powers under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The country's arsenal consists of approximately 225 warheads, of which about 120 are deployed on Vanguard-class submarines.

In 2008, the US withdrew its tactical nuclear weapons from Lakenheath Air Base, where B61 aerial bombs designed for fighter jets were stored.