Russia 'will use their nuclear forces' says TV host

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Britain has been one of the leading countries to take on Russia since Moscow sent its troops to Ukraine and rhetoric surrounding the possibility of nuclear war ramped up. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has pledged hundreds of millions of pounds worth of military aid to Ukraine and imposed sweeping sanctions on Russia, being declared public enemy number one in Moscow as a result. Tensions between the UK and Russia have rarely been higher since the beginning of the Cold War, leaving some to fear that Britain could end up engaged in a direct conflict, or even a nuclear war. Remarkably, the Government is prepared for a number of scenarios in the event of a global conflict, including if Britain is hit by nuclear weapons.

This is because every prime minister writes “letters of last resort” – four identically-worded handwritten letters to the commanding officers of the four British ballistic missile submarines.

They instruct the military on what action to take in the event that an enemy nuclear strike has destroyed the British Government, and has killed or otherwise incapacitated both the prime minister and their designated “second person”, typically a high-ranking member of the cabinet.

The letter will, under the relevant circumstances, be opened by the commander of the Trident submarine, who would have to assume that the prime minister was no longer in a position to take live command of the situation.

The options are said to include the orders: “Put yourself under the command of the US, if it is still there”; “Go to Australia”; “Retaliate”; or “Use your own judgment”.

In the event that the orders are carried out, the action taken could be the last official act of the UK.

If the letters are not used during the term of the prime minister who wrote them, they are destroyed unopened after that person leaves office, so that their content remains unknown to anyone except the issuer

The historian and now peer Lord Hennessy told the Guardian in 2016: “The nuclear bit shakes them all. Then you realise you are prime minister, at a deeper level.”

Tony Blair, when asked to write and sign the letter, immediately went pale, onlookers recalled.

James Callaghan is said to have authorised retaliation. When John Major had to make the decision, he cancelled a weekend at Chequers and went home to Huntingdon.

The chances of the UK ending up in a full-blown war remain low – but recent developments with Finland and Sweden could change the situation.

On Monday, the countries confirmed their intention to join NATO.

Abandoning decades of military non-alignment, the two countries’ decisions will have big ramifications.

Not least because NATO membership could oblige other countries, including the UK, to step in and defend Finland and Sweden.

A key aspect of NATO membership is Article 5, which dictates that if a NATO ally is the victim of an armed attack, each and every country within the Alliance will consider this an act of violence against all members.

Prime Minister Johnson recently vowed that the UK will help defend both countries if either of them comes under attack.

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However, this week, Finland and Sweden’s route into NATO has hit a stumbling block.

Yesterday Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan threatened to veto Finland and Sweden’s accession.

He said: “We will not say yes to those [countries] that apply sanctions to Turkey to join the security organisation NATO.

“They say they will come to Turkey on Monday. Will they come to persuade us? Excuse us, but they shouldn’t bother.”

The UK’s Foreign Secretary, Liz Truss, said on Monday night that she “strongly supports” Finland and Sweden joining NATO, adding that the countries should be integrated into the alliance “as soon as possible”, to “strengthen the collective security of Europe”.

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