Defense and Security

Nuclear Weapons

In Brief

At least nine nations are believed to have nuclear weapons – the United States, Russia, England, France, China, Pakistan, India, North Korea and Israel. Other nations may have nuclear weapons or are working towards them, most notably Iran. At the height of the Cold War in 1985, there were believed to be 65,000 nuclear weapons in the world. As a result of the Non-Proliferation Treaty and unilateral decisions by some countries, this number has been reduced to about 20,000.

An undated image released by the U.S. Government shows the suspected Syrian nuclear reactor building under construction in Syria (REUTERS/U.S. Government).

Article

Lessons of the Syrian Reactor

May 1, 2013, Bruce Riedel

Bruce Riedel writes that while Israel’s covert attack on Syria’s Al Kibar nuclear plant was a strategic success, the U.S. policy process was not. Riedel looks at what happens when the policy-intelligence system breaks down dramatically and publicly.

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