Online study aids used by US soldiers stationed at nuclear bases aroundEurope have been found to contain sensitive details. An investigation byBellingcat uncovered the leak.
Troops on US bases in Europelinkhousingnuclear weapons have been using publicly accessible online flashcard appsto remember long and complex security protocols, the investigative websiteBellingcat revealed on Friday.
The military personnel turned to sites such as Quizlet, Chegg Prep and Cramto memorize codes, jargon and even the status of nuclear vaults, accordingto the report.
While European governments generally refuse to confirm or deny the specificlocations of US nuclear weapons being stored within their borders, leakeddocuments, photos and comments by retired officials often confirm thepresence of the weapons.
The latest leaks, however, have gone so far as to identify the exact numberand location of the weapons within the bases, including whether the vaultsthey are stored in are “hot” — with live weapons — or “cold.”How did Bellingcat discover the secret information?
The author of the investigative piece, Foeke Postma, explained that theresearchers were able to discover the flashcards belonging to the activesoldiers by searching for certain terms known to be associated with nuclearbases.
The result was the unearthing of several sets of flashcards revealinginformation about several bases around Europe, including in Germany, theNetherlands and Turkey.
One set of 70 cards with the title “Study!” disclosed the number of liveand non-live nuclear weapons at the Volkel Air Base in the Netherlands,which the Dutch government considers a secret.
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Other sets revealed how soldiers are supposed to react to various levels ofalarm, where security cameras are located on site, and “duress words” thatsoldiers give over the phone to show that they had been, for example, takenhostage by attackers.How have people reacted to the leak?
Bellingcat discovered flashcards dating back as far as 2013 and asrecent as April 2021.
The site contacted NATO and the US military for comment before publishingtheir story, after which the cards that had been discovered were removed.
Director of the East Asia Nonproliferation Program at the James MartinCenter for Nonproliferation Studies, Jeffrey Lewis, spoke to Bellingcatabout the leaks, calling them a “flagrant breach” in security practices.
He added that the secrecy over nuclear weapons in Europe is not aboutprotecting the weaponslink,but rather protecting political and military leaders from having to “answertough questions about whether NATO’s nuclear-sharing arrangements stillmake sense today. This is yet one more warning that these weapons are notsecure.”
Courtesy: DW
