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The four-minute warning was a public alert system conceived by the British Government during the Cold War and operated between 1953 and 1992. The name derived from the approximate length of time from the point at which a Soviet nuclear missile attack against the United Kingdom could be confirmed and the impact of those missiles on their targets.
The United Kingdom Warning and Monitoring Organisation had five main functions in the event of nuclear war. These were: Warning the public of any air attack. Providing confirmation of nuclear strike. Warning the public of the approach of radioactive fall-out.
WB1401 warning receiver in a local authority control centre. Handel was the code-name for the UK's national attack warning system in the Cold War.It consisted of a small console with two microphones, lights and gauges.
The UK has relied on the Ballistic Missile Early Warning System (BMEWS) and, in later years, Defense Support Program (DSP) satellites for warning of a nuclear attack. Both of these systems are owned and controlled by the United States, although the UK has joint control over UK-based systems.
During the Cold War, the UK developed an emergency alert system called the WB400/WB600/WB1400 warning system, operated by the UK Warning and Monitoring Organisation, aimed to alert UK institutions and the public before a catastrophic wartime attack, such as a nuclear warhead detonation or severe bombing. [3]
“From Russia, we have seen wild threats of tactical nuclear use, large-scale nuclear exercises and simulated attacks against Nato countries, all designed to coerce us from taking the action ...
The chances of a nuclear attack remain remote, but Vladimir Putin's aggression does at least raise the question: what is the UK's nuclear deterrent?
A nnual running costs of the UK’s nuclear deterrent are estimated at 6% of the country’s defense budget, or about $3.79 billion for 2023/2024, according to the House of Commons Library report.