Spain protests erupt as UK nuclear submarine enters Gibraltar | World | News

The Royal Navy has been met with impassioned protests after docking nuclear submarine HMS Anson in the Port of Gibraltar.

Denouncing the arrival of the “floating bombs” last weekend, activists from Verdemar-Ecologistas en Acción claim that the sub endangers lives in the area.

“We continue to maintain our protest against the arrival of these submarines that sail with a nuclear reactor and put the Strait of Gibraltar and those who live in this area at risk”, the group said.

The protesters argue that older reactors are more vulnerable to “earthquakes, floods, extreme weather events or ageing and the management of the nuclear industry itself and accidents”, the UK Defence Journal reports.

HMS Anson was first launched in 2021 and is the eighth Royal Navy vessel to carry the name of Admiral George Anson.

The vessel’s nuclear reactor will not need to be refuelled over its 25-year life and it can circumnavigate the earth without needing to resurface.

The two main weapons the submarine can fire are Spearfish heavyweight torpedoes and Tomahawk Block IV missiles with a range of 1,000 miles.

The Spanish protest group demands an end to all visits by nuclear-powered submarines. It has called for the “definitive withdrawal of these vessels” and has rejected new nuclear emergency plans.

Despite concerns, authorities reportedly maintain that these submarines adhere to strict safety procedures.

Nevertheless, Verdemar-Ecologistas en Acción has said: “We do not have nor do we want a nuclear emergency plan, but rather that they leave.”