The Consequences of American Nuclear Disarmament

The Consequences of American Nuclear Disarmament PDF Author: Christine M. Leah
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3319507214
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 252

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Book Description
This book is about the future of nuclear weapons, geopolitics, and strategy. It examines the legacy of nuclear weapons on US thinking about some concepts of strategy and geopolitics, namely deterrence, extended deterrence, alliances, and arms control. The purpose of this is to demonstrate just how fundamentally nuclear weapons have influenced American thinking about these concepts. It argues that, given the extent of nuclear weapons' influence on these concepts and the implications for international security, further reductions beyond current Strategic Arms Reduction Talks (START) levels, and the more absolute idea of nuclear disarmament, may not necessarily be prudent ideas. Nuclear weapons have contributed to the avoidance of major war between states, made alliances more credible and last longer, and have made arms control relatively easier to conceptualize and manage. As such, the author argues, these concepts may become even more difficult to manage in a world where nuclear weapons are marginalized.

The Consequences of American Nuclear Disarmament

The Consequences of American Nuclear Disarmament PDF Author: Christine M. Leah
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3319507214
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 252

Get Book

Book Description
This book is about the future of nuclear weapons, geopolitics, and strategy. It examines the legacy of nuclear weapons on US thinking about some concepts of strategy and geopolitics, namely deterrence, extended deterrence, alliances, and arms control. The purpose of this is to demonstrate just how fundamentally nuclear weapons have influenced American thinking about these concepts. It argues that, given the extent of nuclear weapons' influence on these concepts and the implications for international security, further reductions beyond current Strategic Arms Reduction Talks (START) levels, and the more absolute idea of nuclear disarmament, may not necessarily be prudent ideas. Nuclear weapons have contributed to the avoidance of major war between states, made alliances more credible and last longer, and have made arms control relatively easier to conceptualize and manage. As such, the author argues, these concepts may become even more difficult to manage in a world where nuclear weapons are marginalized.

Forecasting Zero

Forecasting Zero PDF Author: Jonathan Pearl
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Nuclear disarmament
Languages : en
Pages : 72

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Book Description
A vigorous debate is occurring among American elites with respect to whether and when the United States should relinquish its nuclear weapons. Bolstering hopes for tangible results is that a U.S. President is again publicly and forcefully supporting disarmament. While this debate, which addresses both technical and political factors related to abolition, may be the most serious one of its kind since the dawn of the nuclear age, the future of U.S. nuclear weapons policy remains uncertain. The general approach advanced today in U.S. policy circles largely hews, after all, to the logic of the past 65 years: arms control and nonproliferation now, disarmament at an undetermined time in the future. Moreover, several conceptual and strategic barriers continue to block serious progress toward U.S. disarmament. By situating the current pro-disarmament rhetoric in this larger historical and strategic context, this monograph argues that there is reason to doubt whether the current push for disarmament will produce meaningful and lasting results.

Nuclear Proliferation and the Dilemma of Peace in the Twenty-First Century

Nuclear Proliferation and the Dilemma of Peace in the Twenty-First Century PDF Author: David A. Valone
Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing
ISBN: 1443820342
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 140

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Book Description
On September 27, 2007, Quinnipiac University and the Albert Schweitzer Institute hosted former US President Jimmy Carter and several internationally-known experts at a forum to discuss nuclear disarmament. This book includes papers and transcripts of talks delivered at that conference. It contains the transcript of President Carter’s keynote address, in which he discusses his experiences in the White House when he and Soviet premier Leonid Brezhnev tangled over the size of their respective nuclear arsenals. Carter relates, “I knew the entire time I was president, that 26 minutes after we detected the launching of an intercontinental ballistic missile, that that missile would strike Washington DC or New York or any other target that the Soviets had chosen.” This imminent nuclear threat, Carter notes, strengthened his commitment to peace after he left the White House; the very first conference he scheduled at the Carter Center in Atlanta was on nuclear disarmament. Other papers include talks by Jonathan Granoff, President of the Global Security Institute, who discusses the collective denial that the world seems to have toward nuclear weapons; Ira Helfand, who describes the physical, medical and biological impacts of a massive nuclear explosion should such a disaster occur in or near an urban center; Hirotami Yamada offers a heart-wrenching account of how, as a boy, he survived the atomic bomb blast in his hometown of Nagasaki in August 1945 while the rest of his family perished; Dr. Neil Araya, of the Nobel Peace Prize-winning International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War, discusses the connection between public health and nuclear weapons. Other papers consider historical, philosophical, linguistic and educational issues related to nuclear weapons and the ongoing struggle for peace.

Nuclear Weapons and the Future of Humanity

Nuclear Weapons and the Future of Humanity PDF Author: Avner Cohen
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 9780847672585
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 514

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Book Description
The excellent quality and depth of the various essays make [the book] an invaluable resource....It is likely to become essential reading in its field.--CHOICE

The Consequences of Nuclear Terrorism

The Consequences of Nuclear Terrorism PDF Author: Brian Michael Jenkins
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Nuclear energy industries
Languages : en
Pages : 40

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Book Description
It is not the primary purpose of this paper to argue the probability of nuclear terrorism, which in the final analysis remains a matter of speculation, but instead to presume that a serious incident of nuclear terrorism has occurred, and then to examine the consequences. Will it significantly alter the political landscape of the world? Will it change attitudes about nuclear arms or nuclear energy? Will it lead to a new international regime of cooperation and control? Will it increase the likelihood of further use of nuclear weapons by States or terrorists?

Nuclear First Strike

Nuclear First Strike PDF Author: George H. Quester
Publisher: JHU Press
ISBN: 9780801882852
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 182

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Book Description
This provocative and timely work examines various scenarios in which the deployment of nuclear weapons could occur, the probable consequences of such an escalation, the likely world reactions, and the plausible policy ramifications. Rather than projecting the physical damage that would result from nuclear attacks, George H. Quester offers an exploration of the political, psychological, and social aftermath of nuclear conflict. The prospect of nuclear attack—sixty years after atomic bombs destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki—is difficult to confront on many levels. We may avoid the discussion for emotional reasons, for fear of generating a self-confirming hypothesis, or simply because of the general "nuclear taboo." But there are also self-denying propositions to be harnessed here: if the world gives some advance thought to how nuclear weapons might be used again, such attacks may be headed off. If the world avoids nuclear weapons use until the year 2045, it will be able to celebrate one hundred years of nuclear concord. Quester suggests that this may be achieved through the careful consideration of possible nuclear deployment scenarios and their consequences. In this insightful analysis, he provides a starting point for informed and focused reflection and preparation.

A Skeptic's Case for Nuclear Disarmament

A Skeptic's Case for Nuclear Disarmament PDF Author: Michael E. O'Hanlon
Publisher: Brookings Institution Press
ISBN: 0815725434
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 191

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Book Description
In 2007 two former U.S. secretaries of state, a defense secretary, and a former senator wrote persuasively in the Wall Street Journal that the time had come to move seriously toward a nuclear-free world. Almost two years later, the Global Zero movement was born with its chief aim to rid the world of such weapons once and for all by 2030. But is it realistic or even wise to envision a world without nuclear weapons? More and more people seem to think so. Barack Obama has declared “America’s commitment to seek the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons.” But that is easier said than done. Michael O’Hanlon places his own indelible stamp on this critical issue, putting forth a “friendly skeptic’s case for nuclear disarmament.” Calls to “ban the bomb” are as old as the bomb itself, but the pace and organization of nonproliferation campaigns have picked up greatly recently. The growing Global Zero movement, for example, wants treaty negotiations to begin in 2019. Would this be prudent or even feasible in a world that remains dangerous, divided, and unpredictable? After all, America’s nuclear arsenal has been its military trump card for much of the period since World War II. Pursuing a nuclear weapons ban prematurely or carelessly could alarm allies, leading them to consider building their own weapons—the opposite of the intended effect. O’Hanlon clearly presents the dangers of nuclear weapons and the advantages of disarmament as a goal. But even once an accord is in place, he notes, temporary suspension of restrictions may be necessary in response to urgent threats such as nuclear “cheating” or discovery of an advanced biological weapons program. To take all nuclear options off the table forever strengthens the hand of those that either do not make that pledge or do not honor it. For the near term, traditional approaches to arms control, including dismantling existing bomb inventories, can pave the way to make a true nonproliferation regime possible in the decades ahead.

The Effects of Nuclear Weapons

The Effects of Nuclear Weapons PDF Author: Samuel Glasstone
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Atomic bomb
Languages : en
Pages : 750

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Book Description


The Independent Nuclear State

The Independent Nuclear State PDF Author: John Simpson
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 1349172588
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 355

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Book Description
The Independent Nuclear State: The United States, Britain and the Military Atom is a chronological account and overview of the 40-year history of British military research, development and production work in atomic energy. The United Kingdom's efforts in this field have always had close links with equivalent activities in the United States, and have often been conducted on a mutually co-operative basis. Through its description of these secret Anglo-American interactions, this study serves to highlight the degree to which the public debate in Britain over nuclear weapons has been conducted in a vacuum, as has American public policy-making over its nuclear links with the United Kingdom. This book contains descriptions of the technical evolution of British nuclear weapon designs and production models, estimates of annual output figures for fissile material and weapon types, and indications of the nature of the weapon-testing programme. Decision points are charted, such as the H-bomb development, and the factors that led to existing plans being changed are identified. The demonstrative nature of the programme until the late 1950s is illustrated, together with the rapidity with which the stockpile targets were met at the turn of that decade. The impact of the agreements with the United States, both upon weapon development and production programmes and upon stockpiling is analysed, as well as their effects upon the nuclear submarine programme. The consequences of the mid-1960s termination of weapon development are discussed, as it the later decision to restart it for the Chevaline programme. The impact of these events upon Anglo-American relations is identified, together with the recent British attempts to move to a closer political association with Europe. The study concludes by evaluating the essential nature of four decades of United Kingdom military nuclear development, and identifying the practical limits imposed by past policies upon any attempt by a British government to implement a policy of unilateral nuclear disarmament.

Nuclear Disarmament in International Law

Nuclear Disarmament in International Law PDF Author: Haralambos Athanasopulos
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 9780786451005
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 248

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Book Description
When German physicists Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassman first split the uranium atom in 1938, they might have little imagined the potential power their experiments had unleashed. Since the United States successfully detonated the first atomic weapons in 1945, the entire world has lived in fear of annihilation. Technological advances in weaponry and, importantly, their delivery systems have only heightened the sense of dread. Yet, since the end of World War II, world governments have been unable to agree on a strategy for nuclear disarmament. This led first to the Cold War and ultimately to the proliferation of nuclear weapons throughout the world. This work examines the nuclear question within the framework of international law. The advent of the nuclear age and its impact on postwar peace and law is first covered. This is followed by analyses of the initial United Nations disarmament initiatives and the reasons they were doomed from the start. The globalization of the Cold War, the expansion of the nuclear arms race, and the START treaties and the legacy of 1970s-era detente efforts in the years leading up to the end of the Cold War are then detailed. How the United Nations reacted to the end of the Cold War and the prospects for disarmament in the 21st century are the subjects of the concluding section.