Abstract

Abstract:

The end of the cold war held out the hope that the nuclear genie could be put back into the bottle and disarmament achieved. Rather than seizing this historic opportunity, the George W. Bush administration has increased the role of nuclear weapons in U.S. defense policy. In an era when U.S. conventional military power is both unprecedented and unchallenged, U.S. military planners continue to invent new scenarios for possible nuclear-weapons use. Many of the envisioned nuclear contingencies focus on Asia, particularly China and North Korea. In utilizing nuclear weapons to maintain and extend its military dominance, however, the United States ends up encouraging nuclear proliferation in response while simultaneously undermining U.S. political interests in the region. Instead of looking to build newer, smaller nuclear weapons, the United States should seek to reinvigorate global nonproliferation norms by moving toward nuclear disarmament as required by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

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