Families Against The Bomb in Southampton during cold war

By Ian CrumpGroup Heritage Writer 12th July

In the turbulent era of the waning Cold War, the early 1980s were marked by heightened tensions as Soviet troops faced significant setbacks in their Afghan campaign.

During this era, mothers holding their babes in arms made their way to Greenham Common in Berkshire to voice their opposition to the presence of American nuclear weapons on British soil.

Yet it was the Soviet development of the SS-20 missile from 1975 – four years before the invasion of Afghanistan– that had dramatically escalated tensions between east and west.

The introduction of advanced missile system raised concerns about its range, precision, and destructive capabilities. Many believed that this new weapon had the ability to disrupt the fragile equilibrium of global security by introducing the possibility of a direct military strike from the Soviet Union on Western European nations.

As discussions on arms control progressed, a strategic decision was made to counter the threat by stationing a total of 464 ground-launched Cruise missiles and 108 Pershing II ballistic rockets in Europe in 1983.

The United Kingdom held a share of 160 missiles among them – and 96 were to be based at RAF Greenham Common.

The Greenham announcement was made in June 1980, prompting a huge outcry from the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.

The ‘Greenham Women’ soon attracted global media attention as they undertook a 19-year protest which saw the establishment of 40 camps at the Greenham base.

In various parts of the UK, large-scale protests took place, with Southampton being a notable location where a collective known as Families Against The Bomb emerged.

The Cold War slowly drew to a close in the late 1980s following Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev’s summit conferences with US President Ronald Reagan and Gorbachev’s own internal reform programmes.

The United States and the Soviet Union then signed a treaty in 1987, which led to the removal of all nuclear missiles from the Greenham base. The last missiles were removed in March 1991 – the historic year the Soviet Union ceded power over eastern Europe and was dissolved.

https://www.dailyecho.co.uk/news/24446501.families-bomb-southampton-cold-war/