Nuclear Terrorism Not Likely

Abstract: Now that the Cold War is over, both the United States and the former Soviet Republics are dismantling their nuclear arsenals. Because of a less than reliable system of nuclear security in Russia, the chances of terrorists group obtaining uranium or plutonium from Russia have increased. However, in order to assemble the nuclear weapon, the group would need both knowledge and all the necessary materials. Thus, a nuclear threat by a terrorist is possible but not very likely.

Nuclear Terrorism:

During the 1980s, the world often watched and wondered what would and could occur between the two super power nations, the United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. During the Cold War, both countries produced mass amounts of nuclear weapons. During this period, the U.S. amassed around 18,000 nuclear warheads. The Soviet Union was able to build its supply of nuclear weapons into the tens of thousands during the peak of the Cold War.

However, the world is now living in the 1990s, and the Cold War is over. Because of this, both countries began to pursue a policy of rapid nuclear disarmament. This reduction in arms is due to the START Treaties of 1991 and 1993 which were both signed by the former super powers. These treaties insured that both the United States and the former Soviet republics would be dismantling thousands of nuclear weapons every year. The U.S. has cut its number of deployed warheads to around 8,500, a reduction of nearly 10,000 nuclear warheads. Meanwhile, the former Soviet Republics will be dismantling between two and three thousand nuclear warheads a year for many years into the next century.

However, there is a great irony within this whole situation...

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... they really have a nuclear bomb until it is too late. To this day, there is no totally reliable, effective system to determine if they are bluffing. Our future leaders should definitely work on developing such a system before it is too late.

Works Cited

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Begley, Sharon. "Chain Reaction." Newsweek 12 July 1993: 50-51.

Hughes, David. "Arms Experts Fear Nuclear Blackmail." Aeronautical Engineering 4 January 1993: 61-62.

Hughes, David. "Uranium Seizures Heighten Terrorism Concerns." Aviation Week & Space Technology 3 April 1995: 63-64.

Nelan, Bruce W. "Formula For Terror." Time 29 August 1994: 46-51.

Von Hippel, Frank. "Plutonium Perils." The National Interest August/September 1993: 70.