History of Nuclear Weapons Part 3: Nuclear Reduction and Proliferation - Modern History #393

Post-Cold War nuclear disarmament made dramatic progress.

Since 1989, as the Cold War ended and tensions between the U.S. and the Soviet Union eased, the momentum to reduce nuclear arsenals accelerated. In 1991, the START treaty was signed, leading to the reduction of tens of thousands of nuclear weapons by both nations. This trend continued with President Obama's speech advocating for a world without nuclear weapons and the signing of the New START treaty in 2010; nuclear arms were indeed being reduced.

However, the fear of nuclear weapons actually spread.

While the sheer numbers decreased, the number of countries possessing nuclear weapons grew, and the degradation of control systems became a serious issue. What became particularly apparent after the Cold War was the series of successful nuclear tests conducted by certain nations. This forced the international community to face more complex anxieties than ever before, including the risk of nuclear weapons falling into the hands of terrorist organizations and the proliferation of nuclear capabilities to unexpected states. We delve deeper into how leaders at the time grappled with the daunting challenge of nuclear management.

More to come in the full episode.

Why did proliferation continue despite the ongoing reductions, and what sense of crisis does the world face today? We provide further in-depth analysis and commentary, so please be sure to listen to the full episode.