“We meet in an hour of change and challenge, in a decade of hope and fear”.

With these words, in September 1962 President John F. Kennedy announced his intention to put man on the moon.

It was a bold move in a world on the brink of a new era. Across the Atlantic Ocean, the UK was taking its own giant leap. In December of the same year, President Kennedy and Prime Minister Harold Macmillan took the decision to contribute their strategic nuclear forces to the defence of NATO, deterring the most extreme threats to our Allies.

For the UK, this meant bringing 15 countries under the protection of our nuclear deterrent. NATO has gone through many eras – and gained 17 new Allies since - but the core principle holds unchanged: NATO is a nuclear alliance and will remain so for as long as nuclear

See Full Page