Tensions During The Cold War

Nuclear weapons are one of, if not the most dangerous weapons in the world today and they are one of the biggest issues the world faces at this current moment. They have the capability of destroying entire cities and then some that could result in millions of deaths within seconds. Radiation from the blasts would kill even more people throughout years to come. They were first used in 1945 at the end of World War II, when the United States dropped Little Boy and Fat Man in Hiroshima and Nagasaki to ‘save’ the lives of American soldiers. Since then, a nuclear arms race was born and it’s becoming more of a concern as time moves forward. Albert Einstein, who was the creator of the nuclear bomb once said “I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones.” Countries should not have access to nuclear weapons because it destroys the environment, there is a possibility of a nuclear war that will end in mass destruction of the world, and countries could save both revenue and resources.

Nuclear Proliferation is defined as the rapid spread or increase of nuclear weapons. Nuclear Proliferation has been a conflict worldwide for years. It all started during the Cold War, when the Soviet Union and the United States competed to obtain more nuclear weapons. As the Cold War continued, France, Britain, and China all began to develop their own nuclear technology. On July 1, 1968, the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons was signed and entered into force in 1970. Under this treaty, a total of 190 parties have agreed to help prevent the spread of nuclear weapons. A few years later, the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks non-proliferation act (SALT 1) was signed on May 26, 1972 and entered into force on October 3, 1972. After several years of struggle, the Cold War ended in December 1991.

Document C shows the buildup of nuclear weapons, but they are not being put to use. Thanks to JFK’s agreement with Russia, the Limited Nuclear Test Ban Treaty

The nuclear bomb has been a weapon in the United States arsenal since the end of world war two, where the United States dropped two atomic bombs on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. From that day on the way wars were fought has changed forever. Soon after the bomb droppings on the two Japanese cities a race began between the United States and the Soviet Union named the cold war. The two major powers of the world at that time would threaten each other with nuclear war. The cold war ended because the Soviet Union could no longer economically support communism. Then latter on the United States invaded Iran under suspicion that they had nuclear weapons. Years later may people have wondered in nuclear weapons are necessity. Is it really beneficial to whatever nation that possess it, or is it a disaster just waiting to happen? Debates continue to this day on whether nuclear weapons should be against the Geneva Convention. Does the possibility of a nuclear winter with the annihilation of all mankind outweigh the reason for keeping them for protection and military dominance?

The Cold War was the name given to the time period from 1945 to 1991. After World War II, tensions began between the United States and the Soviet Union. Fighting between the United States and Soviet Union did not happen directly against each other. Instead they fought with arms races, space races, and spying. Both superpowers set aside their differences to defeat Adolf Hitler, even before the war the United States distrusted the Soviet Union. The United States disliked the way the Soviet Union ran government. They believed that the Soviet Union wanted to overthrow the non-communist governments.

The end of World War II had many nations shocked and pondering in 1940’s. Thoughts of a weapon that can erase an entire populous in a short amount of time prompted many nations to consider nuclear armament. This originated from the devastating events of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which brought the world somber, and fearful. Some individuals recognized this and did take measures in order to regulate and prevent future use of these weapons. The Acheson-Lilienthal Report was a document that took a stand against national independent control of atomic weapons by proposing compromise between the U.S, and U.S.S.R., the failure to secure the document prompted the Cold War era and Nuclear Arms race, this became a foundation for further agreements and

The use of the atomic bomb in world war 2 is probably one of the most controversial and infamous act of war that humanity has committed in its history. The weapon is so deadly that it hasn't been used in any war since. The nuclear weapon has caused so many problems after its creation and use. It has caused a nuclear scare which reached its pinnacle in the cuban missile crisis. Although the sacre is still prevalent today with America's recent involvement in the Syrian crisis. Some countries have even got rid of their nukes and encourage other countries to get rid of theirs to get rid of the fear. Nuclear deterrence is sucha big deal that countries are afraid of nukes, but don't want to get rid of theirs. These nukes can have devastating effects

After World War II, countries raced to develop and hoard nuclear weapons. Seemingly learning nothing from the atomic bombs detonated on Nagasaki and Hiroshima, nuclear weapons became necessary for smaller countries to have when their larger neighbors, like Soviet Russia and the United States, had enough to kill the world a few times over. America began to understand the gravity of nuclear arms when less predictable countries became armed similarly. In 1968, the nuclear Nonproliferation Act was signed by many nations, but through the decades violations of the treaty have been common .

In the case of Iraq, the Nonproliferation Treaty of 1967 should have prevented acquisition of nuclear material intended for their WMD programs. Essentially, this treaty contained two key restrictions, which prevented those countries that already possessed the technology from sharing it, and those that did not possess technology from acquiring it. Although any country can acquire U235 (enriched at three to four percent) if declared to the IAEA for peaceful purposes, dual use loopholes allowed Iraq to

This created a problem for the international community. How is it possible to restrain the destructive effects of an atom while still being able to use it for peaceful uses like energy? This problem still alludes scholars around the world to this day, but great advances have been made in the effort to control them. Early US efforts to outlaw the use of nuclear weapons failed. Both President Dwight Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy knew the danger Nuclear weapons posed in their time. President Eisenhower proposed the Atoms for Peace initiative and President Kennedy expressed that “a world where as many as twenty five states possessed nuclear weapons could be “the greatest possible danger and hazard” (United States,

One of the first themes that arises in the book is the issue of having a double standard when it comes to the rules in which the world is supposed to operate under the current Treaty of Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). Schell argues that the treaty has created a two tier system between the countries that possess nuclear weapons and those who do not. He states that “a highly volatile and violent contest is no longer bi-polar but global between some of the existing possessors of the bomb and new entrants or petitioners to the club who hope to deter the great ones” (Schell, p.6, 2007). His argument here is clear. Why should the smaller countries trust the current nuclear powers for protection, and if they can use nuclear weapons for deterrence to ensure their safety why cannot they? Schell argues that the five powerful countries that are allowed

In addition, it is worth mentioning that the use of other types of controversial arms is not prohibited under international law. For example, the International Court of Justice’s advisory opinion of 1996 claimed that the threat or use of nuclear weapons is not prohibited under international law, even though it is extremely difficult to imagine a situation where the use of nuclear weapons might respect the principles of distinction and proportionality and not inflicting superfluous injuries or unnecessary

Nuclear arms can easily be classified as weapons of mass destruction, as they destroy all ecosystems that come in contact with it in a matter of seconds, this fairly new and evolving breed of warfare is continuously becoming a bigger threat to society due to the fact that; the government can turn to nuclear power if opposing countries do not comply with their needs. The Cold War was essentially defined by nuclear weapons and the nuclear arm race between United States and the Soviet Union. A high degree of anxiety existed between the two superpowers and millions of citizens around the world were put to risk by nuclear arm race. The use of these nuclear weapons were exceedingly destructive and the consequences were so enormous that the protection of human rights were questioned. However the use of these weapons were merely to prevent their use by others. In other words nuclear weapons were devices of deterrence not warfighting. There was a mutual nuclear weapon ownership with both states possessing nuclear weapons, therefore the odds of war dropped quickly. Both superpowers quickly came to the realization that nuclear war between the two countries could lead to a devastation effect on the world which concluded the cold war. “From 1968 the only universal treaty that stops the spread of nuclear weapons is the Non- Proliferation Treaty (NPT) with about 130 members. China is a nuclear weapon state but not a party to the treaty. Also missing are India, Pakistan, Brazil, Argentina

The world experienced a war torn Europe in the wake of the 20th century that ended in technological advancements in warfare never seen before. Tanks were invented, along with machine guns, gas masks and submarines. The countries that possessed these gadgets "supposedly" assisted their chance of success against their enemy. Despite many people having access to them, the inventions would only exacerbate a war that would be deemed one of the bloodiest and costliest at the time. Subsequently, World War 2 came and incorporated the same unrestricted warfare which would easily cost the world trillions in todays money and around 65 million lives. The atomic bomb was no stranger to innovation and devastation. Little Boy and Fat Man, codename for the

A central issue in the work surrounding nuclear disarmament is the production of fissile materials. These materials are elements that "can sustain an explosive fission chain reaction" and are essential in all nuclear explosives. The two common forms of fissile materials are highly enriched uranium (HEU) and plutonium; the former is uranium that has been enriched to above 20%. Currently, the global stockpile of HEU is approximately 1670 tons, 99% of which is located in the Nuclear Weapon States: United States, Russia, United Kingdom, France, and China. The pursuit of a multilateral ban on the production of fissile materials began as early as 1953 with US President Dwight Eisenhower 's call for the elimination of fissile materials in his "Atoms for Peace" speech before the United Nations. This was followed by a United Nations General Assembly Resolution 1148 in 1957 which called "the cessation of the production of fissionable materials for weapons purposes and the complete devotion of future production of fissionable materials to non-weapons purposes under effective international control". However, as this was a period in which both the United States and the Soviet Union were actively building up their nuclear weapon stockpile, the efforts within the United Nations to bring about a ban on the production of fissile material was futile.