Can a US General fail to execute a presidential nuclear strike order?

Photo: Photo: Facebook / United States Strategic Command

The US military claims that they may not execute the order of the US President Donald Trump to launch a nuclear strike if it is unlawful. How justified such statements, tried to figure out Air force.

Although under normal circumstances no one has the right not to comply with the order of the president, in the case of receiving an order for a nuclear strike, the generals will need an explanation of his reasons. If the order is illegal, they must refuse.

As the confrontation between the United States and North Korea escalates, people have a question about what can stop Trump from using nuclear weapons.

Retired General Robert Köhler, a former commander of the US strategic forces, said at a congressional hearing on 14 on November that in his previous position he would be ready to execute the order of the president, but only if the order is legal.

Otherwise, the retired general said, he would consult with his advisers and in some circumstances would refuse to carry out the order.

Now, the current head of the US strategic command, General John Heithen, declared at the International Security Forum in Halifax that he would recommend not launching a nuclear strike if he considers it illegal.

But does anyone have the right to say “no” to the president if he orders a nuclear strike?

Access Codes

If Trump wanted to use nuclear weapons, he would first need to discuss all the options with his advisors.

Then he would have to give orders to the highest military command at the Pentagon.

In this situation, the recipient of the order needs to verify that it actually comes from the President of the United States. To do this, he exchanges codes printed on a card called “biscuit"(cookies), which the American president constantly carries with him.

Then, the order must be transferred to the strategic command of the US military, which will send further instructions and access codes directly to combat crews.

Photo: Facebook / The White House

After this, combat crews launch rockets.

Is there anyone in this chain who would be allowed to say no to the president?

Chain of command

According to the congressional research service, the American president has sole authority in making decisions about the use of US nuclear weapons.

Normally, no one has the right to cancel the order of the president, who is also the commander-in-chief of the armed forces.

Theoretically, the vice-president can dismiss the president and take his place if the majority of cabinet members decide that the president does not match his position and is unable to fulfill his duties.

In practice, it would be very difficult to have time to organize it in a short time in order to prevent the president from delivering a nuclear strike.

However, Peter Feiver, a political science professor at Duke University in North Carolina, argues that Trump cannot launch a nuclear strike with the same ease with which he mixes tweets.

“The President gives an order, which is transmitted through the chain of command. Someone at the other end of that chain of command turns a key or presses a button,” Feaver says.

According to Phiver, if the president gives the military an order for a nuclear strike, it will automatically start the consultation process: the generals will want to find out what the president wants to achieve, why he needs to use nuclear weapons, etc.

For all that, Trump will have the legal right to order a strike, despite any advice given to him.

But he still will need to convince the military of the need to execute the order.

Legal orders

The head of the US strategic command, General John Heiten, warned that he would not obey the president’s illegal order.

“If you follow an illegal order, you can go to jail. End up in prison for the rest of your life,” he said.

But which order for a nuclear strike might be considered illegal?

Some believe that any order to use nuclear weapons will be illegal.

But even if you do not agree with this, some circumstances can be cited under which the use of nuclear weapons will be considered illegal.

Anthony Colandgelo, a law professor at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, argues that in some cases nuclear strikes could be contrary to international humanitarian law.

International humanitarian law determines the behavior of countries during war. They are based on agreements signed by the United States, for example, the Geneva Convention, as well as other legal norms.

You can break the law by using nuclear weapons if you can cope with the same task by using conventional weapons, and if both the military and the civilian population suffer from a nuclear strike indiscriminately.

That’s not just Anthony Colandzhelo’s opinion. The US Department of Defense recognizes in its instructions that the use of nuclear weapons is governed by the laws of warfare.

Professor Kolandzhelo says that the obligation to adhere to these laws lies on everyone, starting from the very bottom, for example, a member of the crew of a nuclear submarine.

If the president issues an order to unlawfully use nuclear weapons, anyone who executes this order could potentially be charged with a war crime.

It is the responsibility of these people to say no.

Will the officers of the order disobey?

But not everyone can determine how legitimate this or that order.

The crew of a submarine, for example, will not have access to all the information that is owned by the president and the top military command. Submariners may simply not be able to determine whether the order is legal or not.

Photo: Facebook / United States Strategic Command

However, according to Professor Colangelo, encouraging the military to question every order they receive is not the best option.

“The entire military command structure will fall apart if subordinates start questioning every order they receive,” he says.

If any general still says “no” to the president, the head of state, of course, can fire him. But the person who comes to replace the removed general will also be obliged to comply with the law.

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