Global Issues: Conflict, War and Terrorism: Nuclear Proliferation

Nuclear Weapons proliferation, whether by state or no state actors, poses one of the greatest threats to international security today. Iran’s declared intent to be a nuclear power, North Korea’s nuclear brinkmanship and also the forthcoming Non Proliferation Treaty meeting are all developments to be followed. The idea of nuclear disarmament is gaining traction globally, and requires a multi-national response, but countries supporting it must counter the risk of various ‘rogue states’. Here are a few recent resources and articles on the subject:

1. The Council for Foreign Relations website has an excellent Global Governance Monitor ‘interactive guide’ on Nuclear Proliferation.

2. CFR also carries an article: Confronting a Nuclear Tipping Point “The idea of nuclear disarmament is gaining support internationally, with the United States leading the charge and China and Russia expressing interest, says George P. Shultz, Ronald Reagan’s secretary of state from 1982-89.”

1. The CFR also have an Interactive Timeline on ‘US-Russian Nuclear Arms Control’.

2. Chatham House’s current March edition World Today carries an article: Extended Nuclear Deterrence: Under the Umbrella, which asserts: “In his now famous Prague speech last April, United States President Barack Obama endorsed the vision of a world without nuclear weapons. He sent a strong political signal: if repairing the fragile nuclear nonproliferation arrangements required a credible disarmament commitment by the nuclear weapons states, America was willing to lead by example. But setting that example could become much more complex if a whole host of new nuclear states is to be avoided. The American nuclear umbrella is still needed to shelter many nations, preventing them from pursuing their own nuclear paths.”