Netherlands and weapons of mass destruction
Encyclopedia
Although the Netherlands
does not have weapons of mass destruction
made by itself, the country participates in the NATO nuclear weapons sharing arrangements and trains for delivering U.S.
nuclear weapon
s, i.e., it has weapons of mass destruction made by another country.
The Netherlands is also one of the producers of components that can be used for creating deadly agents, chemical weapons and other kinds of weapons of mass destruction. Several Dutch
companies provided Iraq
with components for these weapons during the 1980s.
The Netherlands ratified the Geneva Protocol
on 31 October 1930. It also ratified the Biological Weapons Convention
on 10 April 1972 and the Chemical Weapons Convention
on 30 June 1995.
operates a uranium enrichment plant at Almelo
to produce low-enriched uranium for use in nuclear power
plants. The same plant could be used to produce highly enriched uranium (HEU) for use in nuclear weapons. The Netherlands has not actually produced HEU, however; HEU for use in its Petten nuclear research reactor
was imported from the U.S. In 2006 the reactor was converted to run on LEU.
Urenco's enrichment technology may have been stolen by Abdul Qadeer Khan
in the 1970s as the basis for Pakistan's nuclear enrichment program, which has resulted in Pakistan developing and testing nuclear weapons. See Pakistan and weapons of mass destruction
.
(NPT) on 2 May 1975.
In the past (1960's till 1990's) the Netherlands took part in deployments of NATO nuclear artillery shells for its self-propelled howitzers and missile artillery units. These 8 inch shells and warheads for Honest John and later Lance
missiles were stored at the special ammunition storages 't Harde
and Havelterberg
. They are not operational anymore.
Until 2006 Royal Netherlands Navy
P-3 Orion
aircraft and their predecessors the P-2 Neptune
s, based at former Airbase Valkenburg near Leiden and Curaçao
in the Caribbean
were assigned U.S. Navy Nuclear Depth Bomb
s (NDB) for use in anti-submarine warfare. These weapons were originally the Mk 101 Lulu yielding 11 kT, and a later replacement the Mk-57 (also referred to as the B-57
).
The NDBs were stored under U.S. Marine guard at RAF St. Mawgan
, Cornwall
, UK, with 60 similar weapons stored there for RAF Shackleton
and Nimrod aircraft. The storage arrangements were agreed between the British Prime Minister Harold Wilson
and President Johnson
in 1965 in a secret memorandum now declassified in the UK archives.
At present (2008) the USAF still provides 22 tactical B61 nuclear bomb
s for use by the Netherlands under the NATO nuclear weapons sharing agreement. These weapons are stored at Volkel Air Base
and in time of war they may be delivered by Royal Netherlands Air Force
F-16 warplanes.
Many countries believe this violates Articles I and II of the NPT, where the Netherlands has committed:
The U.S. insists its forces control the weapons and that no transfer of the nuclear bombs or control over them is intended "unless and until a decision were made to go to war, at which the [NPT] treaty would no longer be controlling", so there is no breach of the NPT.
, France
, Germany
, the United States
, Belgium
, Spain
, India
, and Brazil
, Dutch
companies provided Iraq
with the chemicals used as precursors to produce chemical weapons for use against Iran
in the Iran–Iraq War.
2000 Iran
ians who suffered from chemical warfare during the Iran–Iraq War (1980–1988) submitted an indictment some years ago with a Tehran court against nine companies that had provided Saddam Hussein with these chemicals. 455 American
and Europe
an companies provided aid to Iraq during its war with Iran and two thirds of the companies were German. The United Nations
published a 12,000-page report about the conflict and named the entire suite of companies involved.
experiments with nerve gas in the early 1950s. These experiments were conducted by the TNO organization, on request of the Defense Department. They consisted of the use of sarin
, tabun
, soman
, and a modified French gas called Stof X (Substance X), which was more poisonous than sarin. The experiments were carried out on animals in the village of Harskamp and at the island Vlieland
on the Vliehors bombing range. After 1956, there were only experiments conducted jointly with France and Belgium in the desert of Algeria
, which utilized 6 kilograms of Stof X. The reason behind these experiments was the fear of an attack by the Soviet Union
.
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
does not have weapons of mass destruction
Weapons of mass destruction
A weapon of mass destruction is a weapon that can kill and bring significant harm to a large number of humans and/or cause great damage to man-made structures , natural structures , or the biosphere in general...
made by itself, the country participates in the NATO nuclear weapons sharing arrangements and trains for delivering U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
nuclear weapon
Nuclear weapon
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission or a combination of fission and fusion. Both reactions release vast quantities of energy from relatively small amounts of matter. The first fission bomb test released the same amount...
s, i.e., it has weapons of mass destruction made by another country.
The Netherlands is also one of the producers of components that can be used for creating deadly agents, chemical weapons and other kinds of weapons of mass destruction. Several Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
companies provided Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
with components for these weapons during the 1980s.
The Netherlands ratified the Geneva Protocol
Geneva Protocol
The Protocol for the Prohibition of the Use in War of Asphyxiating, Poisonous or other Gases, and of Bacteriological Methods of Warfare, usually called the Geneva Protocol, is a treaty prohibiting the first use of chemical and biological weapons. It was signed at Geneva on June 17, 1925 and entered...
on 31 October 1930. It also ratified the Biological Weapons Convention
Biological Weapons Convention
The Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological and Toxin Weapons and on their Destruction was the first multilateral disarmament treaty banning the...
on 10 April 1972 and the Chemical Weapons Convention
Chemical Weapons Convention
The Chemical Weapons Convention is an arms control agreement which outlaws the production, stockpiling and use of chemical weapons. Its full name is the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on their Destruction...
on 30 June 1995.
Uranium enrichment
The Urenco GroupUrenco Group
The URENCO Group is a nuclear fuel company operating several uranium enrichment plants in Germany, Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States. It supplies nuclear power stations in about 15 countries, and has a 25% share of the global market for enrichment services...
operates a uranium enrichment plant at Almelo
Almelo
Almelo is a municipality and a city in the eastern Netherlands. The main population centres in the town are Aadorp, Almelo, Mariaparochie and Bornerbroek....
to produce low-enriched uranium for use in nuclear power
Nuclear power
Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity. Nuclear power plants provide about 6% of the world's energy and 13–14% of the world's electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for about 50% of nuclear generated electricity...
plants. The same plant could be used to produce highly enriched uranium (HEU) for use in nuclear weapons. The Netherlands has not actually produced HEU, however; HEU for use in its Petten nuclear research reactor
Petten nuclear reactor
The Petten nuclear reactors are nuclear research reactors in Petten, Netherlands. There are two reactors on the premises of the Petten research centre: a high flux reactor and a low flux reactor....
was imported from the U.S. In 2006 the reactor was converted to run on LEU.
Urenco's enrichment technology may have been stolen by Abdul Qadeer Khan
Abdul Qadeer Khan
Abdul Qadeer Khan , also known in Pakistan as Mohsin-e-Pakistan , D.Eng, Sc.D, HI, NI , FPAS; more widely known as Dr. A. Q...
in the 1970s as the basis for Pakistan's nuclear enrichment program, which has resulted in Pakistan developing and testing nuclear weapons. See Pakistan and weapons of mass destruction
Pakistan and weapons of mass destruction
Pakistan began focusing on nuclear weapons development in January 1972 under the leadership of Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, who delegated the program to the Chairman of PAEC Munir Ahmad Khan...
.
United States-NATO nuclear weapons sharing
The Netherlands ratified the Nuclear Non-Proliferation TreatyNuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, commonly known as the Non-Proliferation Treaty or NPT, is a landmark international treaty whose objective is to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and weapons technology, to promote cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and to...
(NPT) on 2 May 1975.
In the past (1960's till 1990's) the Netherlands took part in deployments of NATO nuclear artillery shells for its self-propelled howitzers and missile artillery units. These 8 inch shells and warheads for Honest John and later Lance
Lance
A Lance is a pole weapon or spear designed to be used by a mounted warrior. The lance is longer, stout and heavier than an infantry spear, and unsuited for throwing, or for rapid thrusting. Lances did not have tips designed to intentionally break off or bend, unlike many throwing weapons of the...
missiles were stored at the special ammunition storages 't Harde
't Harde
t Harde is a town about 6 km southeast of Elburg, on the edge of the Veluwe forest in the Netherlands. It has a train station with connections to Zwolle and Amersfoort. The village's population is approximately 6000 people.-History:...
and Havelterberg
Havelterberg
Havelterberg is a town in the Dutch province of Drenthe. It lies on the border of the municipalties Meppel and Westerveld, and lies about 21 km west of Hoogeveen.In 2001, the town of Havelterberg had 156 inhabitants...
. They are not operational anymore.
Royal Netherlands Navy
The Koninklijke Marine is the navy of the Netherlands. In the mid-17th century the Dutch Navy was the most powerful navy in the world and it played an active role in the wars of the Dutch Republic and later those of the Batavian Republic and the Kingdom of the Netherlands...
P-3 Orion
P-3 Orion
The Lockheed P-3 Orion is a four-engine turboprop anti-submarine and maritime surveillance aircraft developed for the United States Navy and introduced in the 1960s. Lockheed based it on the L-188 Electra commercial airliner. The aircraft is easily recognizable by its distinctive tail stinger or...
aircraft and their predecessors the P-2 Neptune
P-2 Neptune
The Lockheed P-2 Neptune was a Maritime patrol and ASW aircraft. It was developed for the United States Navy by Lockheed to replace the Lockheed PV-1 Ventura and PV-2 Harpoon, and being replaced in turn with the Lockheed P-3 Orion...
s, based at former Airbase Valkenburg near Leiden and Curaçao
Curaçao
Curaçao is an island in the southern Caribbean Sea, off the Venezuelan coast. The Country of Curaçao , which includes the main island plus the small, uninhabited island of Klein Curaçao , is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands...
in the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
were assigned U.S. Navy Nuclear Depth Bomb
Nuclear Depth Bomb
A Nuclear Depth Bomb is the nuclear equivalent of the conventional depth charge and can be used in Anti-Submarine Warfare for attacking submerged submarines...
s (NDB) for use in anti-submarine warfare. These weapons were originally the Mk 101 Lulu yielding 11 kT, and a later replacement the Mk-57 (also referred to as the B-57
B57 nuclear bomb
The B57 nuclear bomb was a tactical nuclear weapon developed by the United States during the Cold War.Entering production in 1963 as the Mk 57, the bomb was designed to be dropped from high-speed tactical aircraft. It had a streamlined casing to withstand supersonic flight. It was 3 m long, with a...
).
The NDBs were stored under U.S. Marine guard at RAF St. Mawgan
RAF St. Mawgan
RAF St Mawgan is a Royal Air Force station near St Mawgan and Newquay in Cornwall. In 2008 the runway part of the site was handed over to Newquay Airport. The remainder of the station still continues to operate under the command of the RAF...
, Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, UK, with 60 similar weapons stored there for RAF Shackleton
Avro Shackleton
The Avro Shackleton was a British long-range maritime patrol aircraft for use by the Royal Air Force. It was developed by Avro from the Avro Lincoln bomber with a new fuselage...
and Nimrod aircraft. The storage arrangements were agreed between the British Prime Minister Harold Wilson
Harold Wilson
James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, KG, OBE, FRS, FSS, PC was a British Labour Member of Parliament, Leader of the Labour Party. He was twice Prime Minister of the United Kingdom during the 1960s and 1970s, winning four general elections, including a minority government after the...
and President Johnson
Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson , often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States after his service as the 37th Vice President of the United States...
in 1965 in a secret memorandum now declassified in the UK archives.
At present (2008) the USAF still provides 22 tactical B61 nuclear bomb
B61 nuclear bomb
The B61 nuclear bomb is the primary thermonuclear weapon in the U.S. Enduring Stockpile following the end of the Cold War. It is an intermediate yield strategic and tactical nuclear weapon featuring a two-stage radiation implosion design....
s for use by the Netherlands under the NATO nuclear weapons sharing agreement. These weapons are stored at Volkel Air Base
Volkel Air Base
Volkel Air Base is a military airbase used by the Royal Netherlands Air Force - Dutch: Koninklijke Luchtmacht , and is located near the town of Uden, Noord-Brabant, in the Netherlands. It is home to three F-16 Fighting Falcon squadrons, 311, 312 and 313...
and in time of war they may be delivered by Royal Netherlands Air Force
Royal Netherlands Air Force
The Royal Netherlands Air Force , Dutch Koninklijke Luchtmacht , is the military aviation branch of the Netherlands Armed Forces. Its ancestor, the Luchtvaartafdeling of the Dutch Army was founded on 1 July 1913, with four pilots...
F-16 warplanes.
Many countries believe this violates Articles I and II of the NPT, where the Netherlands has committed:
- "... not to receive the transfer from any transferor whatsoever of nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices or of control over such weapons or explosive devices directly, or indirectly ... or otherwise acquire nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices ...".
The U.S. insists its forces control the weapons and that no transfer of the nuclear bombs or control over them is intended "unless and until a decision were made to go to war, at which the [NPT] treaty would no longer be controlling", so there is no breach of the NPT.
Dutch production of CW precursor chemicals
Alongside other companies from the United KingdomUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, and Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
companies provided Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
with the chemicals used as precursors to produce chemical weapons for use against Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
in the Iran–Iraq War.
2000 Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
ians who suffered from chemical warfare during the Iran–Iraq War (1980–1988) submitted an indictment some years ago with a Tehran court against nine companies that had provided Saddam Hussein with these chemicals. 455 American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an companies provided aid to Iraq during its war with Iran and two thirds of the companies were German. The United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
published a 12,000-page report about the conflict and named the entire suite of companies involved.
Poison gas experiments
On February 20, 2008, it was revealed that the Netherlands had conducted chemical warfareChemical warfare
Chemical warfare involves using the toxic properties of chemical substances as weapons. This type of warfare is distinct from Nuclear warfare and Biological warfare, which together make up NBC, the military acronym for Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical...
experiments with nerve gas in the early 1950s. These experiments were conducted by the TNO organization, on request of the Defense Department. They consisted of the use of sarin
Sarin
Sarin, or GB, is an organophosphorus compound with the formula [2CHO]CH3PF. It is a colorless, odorless liquid, which is used as a chemical weapon. It has been classified as a weapon of mass destruction in UN Resolution 687...
, tabun
Tabun
Tabun may refer to:* Tabun Cave, a cave near Tabun, Israel where remains of Neanderthal Man were found.* A tabun oven, a clay oven used to make tabun bread...
, soman
Soman
Soman, or GD , is an extremely toxic chemical substance. It is a nerve agent, interfering with normal functioning of the mammalian nervous system by inhibiting the cholinesterase enzyme. As a chemical weapon, it is classified as a weapon of mass destruction by the United Nations according to UN...
, and a modified French gas called Stof X (Substance X), which was more poisonous than sarin. The experiments were carried out on animals in the village of Harskamp and at the island Vlieland
Vlieland
Vlieland is a municipality in the northern Netherlands. The municipality of Vlieland has only one major town: Oost-Vlieland . It is the second-least densely populated municipality in the Netherlands ....
on the Vliehors bombing range. After 1956, there were only experiments conducted jointly with France and Belgium in the desert of Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
, which utilized 6 kilograms of Stof X. The reason behind these experiments was the fear of an attack by the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
.