Nuclear Weapons Essay, Research Paper
What should be done to prevent 3rd world countries and terrorists from obtaining Nuclear weapons?
Nuclear weapons are the most deadly weapons man has ever created and now 3rd world countries as well as terrorist can possess them. The first atomic bomb which hit Hiroshima with a 100 kiloton explosion that s equal 100,000 tons of TNT Five years later the first fusion bomb went off with an explosion 100 times more powerful than the one that hit Japan, and that was 40 years ago. Today we have nuclear bombs the size of, a large watermelon capable of yielding an explosion equal to 100,000,000 tons of TNT. With the recent fall of the Soviet Union and small state like countries now possessing huge nuclear arsenals. Action must be taken to protect and prevent these weapons of mass destruction from falling in to the hands of those that would use them to reack havoc not only upon humanity, but the world as well.
Terrorists are the most dangerous of the two groups. The majority of terrorists are located in the Middle East, which is known to already possess nuclear weapons. Along with huge amounts of nuclear now on the black market, makes it very easy for terrorists to get a hold of nuclear weapons. However, despite popular belief it is very easy to make a nuclear weapon, with only a little amount of fissionable material. The plans to create a nuclear warhead can be found anywhere in the world; from books to the Internet which can even tell how to build a fusion bomb. According to a test done by a group of college students, they were able to create a low yield nuclear bomb as powerful as the one that hit Hiroshima with only 5 kilograms. Also recently, a group of terrorists were caught in possession of 6 pounds of Highly Enriched Uranium, which more than enough to create a nuclear warhead.
With the recent fall of the USSR, many small countries now find themselves, protecting enough nuclear material to destroy all life on this planet. These small countries also have a limited amount of security and resources to protect these arsenals, as well as out dated records of the amount of nuclear material. This makes it very easy for terrorists to get a hold of small as well as large amounts of nuclear material, without anyone ever knowing.
Another danger is 3rd world countries, they not only can obtain nuclear material but have the resources to make nuclear weapons. Though these small countries do care if they die (unlike most terrorists), they do have a huge grudge against the super powers such as the USA, England, and Russia; which can at some points make them even more dangerous. Also such countries mostly encompass the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States). Making it even easier for these small countries to obtain nuclear weapons and material. There is even a large problem with this. Since these countries have such limited technology and resources, it is highly improbable that they will the take the essential safety precautions in order to prevent a nuclear catastrophe.
There are many answers to this question, but only few have worked. In the early 1970s the USSR and the USA got together and started The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), and START and START II. These were set up to diminish their mammoth arsenal of maniacally menacing weapons of mass destruction. Other answers are increased security at civilian nuclear facilities, since these contain the highest concentration of nuclear materials, and will be the most likely targets of any group. The removal of plutonium is also necessary since it can easily be converted into weapons grade and the fact that s it exists in such large quantities. This will be an easy task since plutonium s primary use was as a reserve nuclear fuel, except that there is an ample amount of uranium on the planet. These answers will temporarily solve the problem, but others will need to be found.
It is obvious that nuclear materials need to be controlled and rigorously safe guarded. Since they are so deadly, we must do all that we can to prevent a nuclear holocaust. The NPT and the other nuclear prevention treaties were a start, and we must make sure it continues. In consequence, we believe that the key is to end plutonium production, together with higher securities on civilian nuclear facilities will hope temporally suspend these problems, however a cure must be found for this apocalyptic threat, before the prophecy of Nostradamus comes true.
Works Cited List
Alvaro, Sam Nick. The Threat of Nuclear Weapons.
Peace Magazine July/Aug, 1996: 11-15
Cooper, Mary H. Nuclear Arms Cleanup.
Gallucci, Robert L. Nuclear Situation in Iraq.
Dispatch. July 5th, 1993: 483-484. SIRS 1997.
Secretary Christopher and Chinese Vice Premier/Foreign Minister Qian. The
U.S. and China: Curbing Missile and Nuclear Weapons Proliferation. Dispatch. Oct. 17th, 1994: 701-702. SIRS 1997
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