Author's Response: The Subject—Nuclear Weapons and Security in 21st Century Asia, not Nuclear Choices, Proliferation, or Nonproliferation Policy

[ 152 ] asia policy Author’s Response: The Subject—Nuclear Weapons and Security in 21st Century Asia, not Nuclear Choices, Proliferation, or Nonproliferation Policy Muthiah Alagappa My thanks to the reviewers for contributing to this roundtable. I would like to preface my response with two general points. First, the two books under review differ substantially in purpose and scope. Nuclear Logics seeks “to help understand why states seek or renounce nuclear weapons” (p. ix), focusing on non-nuclear East Asian and Middle Eastern states that seek or do not seek nuclear weapons. The Long Shadow, on the other hand, seeks “to develop a deep understanding in comparative perspective of the purposes and roles assigned to nuclear weapons in the security thinking and practice of relevant states and to explore their implications for regional security, stability, and conflict resolution” in a dramatically altered international security and nuclear environment with a focus on Asia (p. 22). The Asian security region is defined broadly to include Northeast, Southeast, and South Asia; the United States; Russia; Australia; and tentatively the Middle East. Inquiry in The Long Shadow is not limited to states that may or may not seek nuclear weapons. Importantly, the book investigates the nuclear roles and strategies of all states that possess nuclear weapons and of those non–nuclear weapons states that are allied with nuclear weapons states, as well as the acquisition prospects and the possible roles in which nonstate actors may employ nuclear weapons. Although informed by certain concepts and theories, The Long Shadow does not seek to test particular hypotheses or advance a causal explanation. The book is by design an empirical study to develop a firm foundation for subsequent conceptual and theoretical work. Second, The Long Shadow is not about nonproliferation or disarmament. Although the findings of the study have implications for both issues and I do tease out some of these in my concluding chapters, a primary purpose of the study is to provide an alternative perspective to the nonproliferation and nuclear disarmament discourses that have tended to dominate discussion of nuclear weapons in the United States. There is little doubt that WMD proliferation continues to be a crucial security concern, and some believe that muthiah alagappa is Distinguished Senior at the East-West Center. He can be reached at . note u The author would like to thank Mark Borthwick, Charles Morrison, and James Wirtz for their comments on an earlier version of this response. [ 153 ] book review roundtable • nuclear logics & the long shadow nuclear disarmament should be an urgent goal of humanity. These are not the only lenses through which to view nuclear weapons, however. A substantial number of states of all stripes continue to attach value to the security roles of their nuclear arsenals. The management and control of nuclear weapons requires that we understand the roles such weapons perform or are deemed to perform. The ethics of responsibility requires us to address the roles and implications of nuclear weapons in all their dimensions. Thus, a security perspective that attaches importance to but does not prejudge the salience of nuclear weapons in national security strategies intentionally girds inquiry in The Long Shadow. Taking seriously the security rationales advanced by nuclear weapons states, including the United States, does not imply uncritical acceptance of the party line. It is thus unfortunate that concern with proliferation has dominated the reviews. An excessive focus on proliferation and a failure to recognize the substantial differences in the purpose and scope of the books under review have prevented reviewers (except for Christopher Ford) from direct and substantial engagement with the main propositions advanced in The Long Shadow. In fact, if a reader were only to rely on the reviews, he or she would be misinformed of the purpose and the key propositions advanced in the book. In light of the above I will limit my response to a few specific points: the logic of zero; the United States and nuclear disarmament; nuclear weapons, security, and stability; and the supposedly “underwhelming” and “contradictory” nature of my proposal for a new nuclear order. Logic of Zero Deepti Choubey contends that the January 2007 op-ed essay by the “four horsemen”—George Shultz, Henry Kissinger, William...