The Pros And Cons Of Acquisition Of Nuclear Weapons

Two main theorists of international relations, Kenneth Waltz and Scott Sagan have been debating on the issue of nuclear weapons and the proliferation of nuclear weapons in the 21st century. In their book The Spread of Nuclear Weapons: An Enduring Debate, they both discuss their various theories, assumptions and beliefs on nuclear proliferation and nuclear weapons. To examine why states would want to attain/develop a nuclear weapon and if increasing nuclear states is a good or bad thing. In my paper, I will discuss both of their theories and use a case study to illustrate which theory I agree with and then come up with possible solutions of preventing a nuclear war from occurring.

Since the invention of nuclear weapons, they have presented the world with a significant danger, one that was shown in reality during the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. However, nuclear weapons have not only served in combat, but they have also played a role in keeping the world peaceful by the concept of deterrence. The usage of nuclear weapons would lead to mutual destruction and during the Cold War, nuclear weapons were necessary to maintain international security, as a means of deterrence. However, by the end of the Cold War, reliance on nuclear weapons for maintaining peace became increasingly difficult and less effective (Shultz, et. al, 2007). The development of technology has also provided increasing opportunities for states

Nuclear weapons pose a direct and constant threat to people. Not even close from keeping the peace, they breed fear and mistrust among nations. These ultimate instruments

The proliferation, or rapid increase in numbers, of nuclear weapons among states, has become an incredibly trying and pressing issue in our world today. Tensions between states that have nuclear capabilities are reaching all time highs and fingers are being pointed in every direction. However, the entire issue regarding nuclear proliferation begins with the United States. In 1945, World War II came to an abrupt halt when, on August 6th and August 9th, the U.S. dropped the first atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The bombs instantly killed 70,000 individuals, and an estimated 340,000 total died as a result of the fallout (2). As a result of the monumental power and destruction that the United States demonstrated, the world’s reaction was to try and implement a plan that would ban the use of nuclear weapons. The plan would have been regulated by international law, but, unfortunately, no deal could be reached. It had taken another 25 years before the Non-Proliferation Treaty was formed. At this point, five states already possessed nuclear weapons of even greater power and magnitude than the original atomic bombs. Today, America is still dealing with the “fallout” of the United States, a fateful decision to expose the world to weapons of mass destruction (4).

When the topic of nuclear weapons, stockpiles, or power plants comes to the forefront, many people automatically associate nuclear materials to terrorist. Because of that association, people automatically think the only dangers faced are when nuclear materials are in the hands of the terrorist. However, that has been proved to be a false assumption as accidents at nuclear stockpiles and power plants pose a far greater danger to American security than the deliberate use of nuclear weapons by terrorist. Throughout the paper, arguments will be constructed backing up the previous statement. The paper will start with a basic understanding of fission and radiation to set the foundation of the basic knowledge of the science behind the subject. Then

Weapons of mass destruction and terrorism have become the two major focuses on the international stage in today’s world. The ultimate fear of the United States is the possibility that nuclear weapons might be placed in the hands of terrorist organizations and states, which might use such weapons to attack other countries. Iran and North Korea possess large scale nuclear proliferation programs, which have recently become much larger threats to the world. North Korea, which was previously bound by a non-proliferation treaty with the United States, recently broke the treaty by resuming its nuclear programs. The United States has been unsuccessful in persuading North Korea to resume compliance with the agreement. Iran, on the other hand, is much more deceptive in its nuclear programs. When nuclear proliferation was recently discovered to have resumed in Iran, Iranian officials explained that they were producing uranium (the “main ingredient” in nuclear weapons) for national energy resources. Thomas Omestad of U.S. News and World Report states that “Iran intends to convert 37 tons of ‘yellowcake’ uranium oxide into uranium hexafluoride, a gas that in turn could be used to produce enough highly enriched uranium for five nuclear bombs” (Omestad 38). Richard Russell of Parameters quotes Iranian President

Attempts at nuclear terrorism are probable but there will be many obstacles for success. One main factor that hinder use of nuclear weapons is the acquisition of fissionable material. The raw material that is widely used for production of nuclear devices is uranium and plutonium (Meulenbelt and Nieuwenhuizen, 2015). These materials are not easily obtainable and successful weaponization is highly unlikely. Terrorists are able to obtain these materials from facilities but these buildings are heavily secured. Using uranium and plutonium to create a nuclear weapon requires technological sophistication and it is cost-effective. These characteristics support the evaluation that, nuclear attacks are unlikely to occur but the impact would be terrifying (Meulenbelt and Nieuwenhuizen,

the advent of the nuclear age brought with it increased concern about national security as well as human survival. since the first atomic bomb was exploded over hiroshima on august 6 1945 advances in nuclear technology and delivery systems have only served to enhance the potential dangers. whereas almost 100,000 people lost their lives on the fateful day in hiroshima, nuclear weapons currently threaten the lives of hundreds of millions. the nuclear revolution has resulted in the develpment of bombs measured in

The world has slowly been transforming into a hostile environment, especially with the growing threat of nuclear attacks. To create a foundation for the understanding of the global issue, one must comprehend that nuclear proliferation is the spreading of nuclear research, materials, and weapons to Non-Nuclear Weapons States. Many world leaders have come to the conclusion that nuclear weapons will lead to unavoidable tensions and conflicts. As a result, countries signed the non-nuclear proliferation treaty in 1968, which came into force in 1970 (“Nuclear Weapons Timeline”). One of the countries that luckily took charge in the movement, was the United States. From the signing of the treaty to present day, the U.S. has strongly opposed nuclear

Like so many other things in our daily lives, nuclear weapons can appear in terms of good and bad. Nuclear weapons are the most powerful and deadliest tools that has ever invented in the world. Since the use of the nuclear weapons in Japanese cities Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945, the world became aware of the power that these weapons possess. There is a total of 16,000 nuclear warheads all over the world. As of 2015, more than 90% of the nuclear warheads belong to United States and Russia. More than 7,000 belong to the United States, 7,700 in Russia, 300 in France, 250 in China, 225 in United Kingdom, 110 in Pakistan, 100 in India, 80 in Israel, and 10 in North Korea (Http://greengarageblog.org/author/greengarageblogadmin).

There are many purposes to these nuclear weapons. In the government they can use them as

Abstract:  Now that the Cold War is over, both the United States and the former Soviet Republics are dismantling their nuclear arsenals. Because of a less than reliable system of nuclear security in Russia, the chances of terrorists group obtaining uranium or plutonium from Russia have increased. However, in order to assemble the nuclear weapon, the group would need both knowledge and all the necessary materials. Thus, a nuclear threat by a terrorist is possible but not very likely.

It is undeniable that the nature of nuclear weapons has changed military and political relationships among states significantly. Thus, nowadays nuclear weapons are considered to be a traditional means of politics and security. It has been about seven decades since the only case when nuclear weapons were used on Japanese cities Hiroshima and Nagasaki. With each passing year the use of nuclear weapons has been very unlikely, and the idea of world without nuclear weapons is becoming stronger. However, threats of using them still continue, since states still rely heavily on such weapons and continue investing in development of their arsenals. Therefore, those actions are strongly criticized by people all around the globe since they think that

Nuclear terrorism can take a variety of forms. The most frequently discussed form involves a terrorist group either stealing a nuclear weapon or building a nuclear device using stolen or illegally purchased nuclear material. This paper explores the dangers and threats of Nuclear Terrorism. It also goes in depth with how the government’s actions have prevented groups, countries and homegrown terrorist associations from starting a nuclear attack. The research that has been done on this paper comes from information from both online and offline sources. This paper contains information from both the NSA archive and from the Valencia College Database. In reading this I hope you grasp a better understanding of how the dangers of Nuclear Terrorism.

However, many countries started to seek for these kind of weapons. After about three decades of the first use of nuclear attack, a nuclear power plant major accident occurred in Chernobyl, causes a huge amounts of radioactive particles to spread around the plant. Due to that, the surrounded city was evacuated and a lot of people was contaminated and some of them died [2].