CNN Exclusive: The US military is absolving officials for failing to secure a nuclear weapons base

(CNN) — Two US Air Force commanders and four of their subordinates at Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota have been relieved of duty this week, two defense officials told CNN, after an inspection revealed they had failed to secure weapons stockpiles. Nuclear in the norm, according to the rules.

Minot Air Force Base is the only air force facility that houses ballistic missiles and strategic bombers.

Officials told CNN that the six individuals were relieved of their positions after failing to test nuclear safeguards at the base, and there is no indication that the failure was related to handling the nuclear weapon itself, as another defense official said the failure was due to “failure to comply with special instructions.” safety of vehicles and equipment.

The Director of Public Affairs at the Air Force Global Command, Colonel Bruce Vidal, did not confirm the nature of the inspection process, telling CNN: “We have well-studied and disciplined inspection protocols and we expect 100% compliance, and anything less than that percentage is unacceptable, this is important to us.”

The inspections aim to verify that the nuclear stockpile is safe and under control, and the inspection tests the ability of the various units to carry out their mission related to nuclear weapons, as well as the ability to handle and maintain nuclear weapons.

This isn’t the first case of failure to ensure nuclear safety. In 2013, the Air Force’s nuclear missile unit at Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana failed a safety and security inspection, according to an Air Force statement at the time.

The statement said: “Tactical errors were committed during one of the exercises conducted within the framework of the inspection.”

It is reported that these inspection results were kept secret in 2017 after officials decided that publishing them might reveal potential vulnerabilities to the enemies of the United States.