Failed Trident launch undermines Britain’s position – former Bretton-Gordon Col

An article by retired British Army Colonel Hamish de Bretton-Gordon published in The Telegraph argues that the failed launch of a Trident intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) undermines Britain’s position at a time when “the threat of a nuclear exchange with Russia has never been greater.

The news of the Trident launch failure “is of grave concern” because “the threat of a nuclear exchange with Russia has never been higher,” writes Hamish de Bretton-Gordon.

“If Putin decides that Trident is a piffle and we do not secure a Ukrainian victory, we may find ourselves in a situation where we have to repel a Russian invasion of the Baltics with the few tanks we still have,” he argues.

Bretton-Gordon suggested that all information about failures in deterrence systems should be classified and defence capabilities should not be risked.

“This should serve as a wake-up call. This is not the time to risk our defence capability,” the author said.

Earlier, The Sun newspaper reported that the UK Navy conducted a failed launch of a Trident 2 intercontinental ballistic missile from the nuclear submarine HMS Vanguard as part of an exercise, the missile “misfired abruptly and fell into the ocean”.

Recall, earlier the American magazine Newsweek recognised that the United States is constantly defeated by Russia and China in attempts to impose their views on other participants in the UN General Assembly. Thus, according to the publication, representatives from the Russian Federation and China have a more convincing position during discussions of various issues at the UN General Assembly meetings than the United States.