Nuclear weapons

Press, 4 July 1983, Page 20

Nuclear weapons

Sir,—Disclosures of the nuclear capacity of the United States Pacific fleet made recently in Washington will be of interest to many readers. Pentagon papers, supplied to the United States Congress to explain the 1984 Defence budget proposal, make it clear that the Pacific fleet accounts for the bulk of American non-strategic forces in Asia and the Pacific. About 1500 nuclear weapons are deployed with the Pacific fleet. They include nuclear depth charges, subrock and asrock nuclear torpedoes and medium range warheads of 100 to 500 kilotons. The Pacific has become for United Stafes strategists as potential a limited nuclear battlefield as Europe. The candidness of the papers in which nuclear weapons are referred to as standard equipment on some vessels, provokes the question: “Why all the secrecy here?” Neither confirming nor denying seems to be a policy reserved for areas where nuclear weapons are unwelcome — such as New Zealand ports. — Yours, etc., KEITH BURGESS. July 1, 1983.