Nuclear Weapon?s Future Essay -- essays research papers fc

For almost a half a century, the United States and the U.S.S.R. fought a nuclear arms war, the â€Å"Cold War.† The â€Å"Cold War† officially ended August 19, 1991, when the Soviet Union collapsed. Ironically, the war ended without a battle or a shot fired. In fact, nuclear weapons have only been used once. In the Second World War, the United States dropped two nuclear bombs, one on Hiroshima, the other on Nagasaki. So, what is the future of the Nuclear Weapons Policy, housed in the United States? For now, the future seems to lie in reduction and deterrence. In 1991, the United States and Russia signed the first Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START I). According to the treaty, the United States and Russia reduce the number of strategic nuclear warheads deployed by the two countries from 13,000 and 11,000, respectively, to around 8,000 each. The Second treaty (START II), signed in 1993 and ratified in 1996 by the United States says that each nation would further condense their number of deployed warheads to between 3,000 and 4,500, which brings the total to approximately 10,000 nuclear weapons for each side, by the projected 2003 date. START III, which would reduce the level of warheads to 2,000-2,500, cannot be discussed until START II Russia ratifies START II. In addition, nuclear testing ended for both sides and the production of weapon-grade fissile material has stopped. The nuclear treaties leave enough nuclear capability, in both the United States and Russia, to damage an attacking nation. In fact, without Russia and the United St ates nuclear arsenal, there are a little over a thousand weapons divided among the rest of the world, as reported by the Center for Defense Information, as long as all the countries in the world approve Test Ban Treaty. In addition, defense experts believe it would require only a little over a thousand nuclear missiles to fen off an attack. Therefore, neither country needs to fear that they will not have the strength to retaliate. Actually, the United States and its NATO allies retain their Cold War â€Å"weapons of last resort’ doctrine that allows the first use of nuclear weapons if deemed necessary to cope with non-nuclear attacks, and Russia has announced that she will abandon the USSR’s no-first-use pledge for a position similar to NATO’s. ‘â€Å"The US and Russia have 5,000 to 6,000 nuclear missiles ready to launch on 15 minutes notice,’... ...ssile could fight the war and maybe only a few hundred thousand will perish, instead of a million. However, the future seems to pull toward reduction and deterrence. Works Cited Landy, Jonathan S. US Downsizes its Nuclear-Weapons Ambitions (December 24, 1997). The Christian Science Monitor. 14 November 1999. . Nuclear Facts ‘n’ Figures. Center for Defense Information. 14 November 1999. . Summary of the Center for the Security Policy’s High Level Round Table Discussion on the Future of the U.S. Nuclear Deterrence, 15 July 1997, the Ana Hotel, Washington D.C. The Center for Security Policy. 13 November 1999. . The Future of U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy: Executive Summary. Academy of Sciences. 12 November 1999. . Newman, Richard J. A U.S. Victory, at a Cost of $5.5 Trillion: The Nuclear-Arms Race Gets a Price Tag (7/13/98). U.S. News & World Report. 1999 Nov 18. .