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https://theconversation.com/the-threat-of-nuclear-weapons-is-greater-than-ever-heres-how-international-law-can-help-290523>
"The outlook for nuclear arms control is desolate in all three of its
dimensions – risk reduction, non-proliferation and outright elimination. The
important agreements of the past are dead or on life support. And the recent
behaviour of the actors that matter most – the United States, Russia and China
– has fed concerns things can only get worse.
The nine nuclear-armed states possess between them more than 12,200 nuclear
warheads, with a combined destructive capacity of more than 145,000 Hiroshima
bombs. Some 9,000 of these are militarily active or deployed.
Alarmingly, some 2,000 US and Russian weapons remain on dangerously high alert,
ready to be launched within a decision window for each president, if their
country is perceived – rightly or wrongly – to be under nuclear attack, of just
four to eight minutes.
The US and Russia, holding between them 90% of the global stockpile,
dramatically downsized their inventories after the end of the Cold War. But
that momentum has completely stalled. Every nuclear-armed state is now
modernising or increasing its arsenal. This is especially true of China, whose
inventory has doubled in a few short years to nearly 600 weapons, with new
land- and seaborne delivery systems.
More troubling still, the longstanding taboo against the use of nuclear weapons
may be weakening, with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin in particular talking
up this prospect in the Ukraine war in language not heard since the height of
the Cold War. A number of states are considering using nuclear weapons –
especially so-called “tactical” weapons – not just for deterrence but for
warfighting."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
