Smuggling of Nuclear Material
Over the past five years the former states of the Soviet Union haven't been able to prevent the leakage of nuclear material. Nuclear materials and technologies are more accessible now than at any other time in history, due to the breakup of the Soviet Union and the worsening of economic conditions. No longer does the Soviet KGB, the Soviet military and the Soviet border guards have the control to stop the smuggling of nuclear material's. With the Cold War being over, there is a huge stockpile of over 100 nuclear sites (See Appendix A).
Russia, alone has an inventory of 1,300 tons of highly enriched uranium (HEU), and 165 tons of weapon usable plutonium. Such material is coming into high demand on the market. Terrorist, organized crime and countries with nuclear ambition, are high bid contenders for the material. The United States is also becoming involved for the safety of preventing a nuclear disaster. The U.S. has just begun their large task and with Russia's worsening economy, smuggling of nuclear material will continue.
During the Cold War the security of Soviet nuclear weapons and missile materials was based on a highly centralized military system and operating within a strong political authority. The workers back then where well disciplined and each individual new his/her role. The workers were among the best treated and loyal to the Russian military. They are now suffering hardships and are forced to scavenge anything to pay for their food, rent and social services.
A new trend is already occurring with some of the workers . There are those that will seek employment out of the nuclear field and in the commercial sector, where salaries are higher. Then the unfortunate who lose their jobs and find no work. The scarier thought is that the uncontempt people in Russia's nuclear complex with access to nuclear materials will sell themselves, to make a quick buck. Most suppliers of nuclear material, were insiders who had worked or were then working at nuclear research institutes or naval bases. Most perpetrators had no customers in hand but new that a quick profit existed (See
Appendix B).
The first confirmed case involving the diversion of HEU occurred at the
Luch Scientific Production Association in Podolsk. Between May and September of...
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...; The smuggling of nuclear material out of Russia has become proratable to the low income worker as well as to the benefit of terrorist, organism crime and nuclear research centers. There exist no security at most of the nuclear facilities and so apprehending the material is quit easy. More cases of unsuccessful attempts are becoming known to the media, but any successful attempts the government, both Russia and the U.S have decline to answer. If left unchecked it may even escalate to the complex level of drug smuggling.
Work Cited List
Thomas B. Cochran, Robert S. Norriss, Making the Russian Bomb: From
Stalin to Yelsin, Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1995.
John Deutch, ³The Threat of Nuclear Diversion Statement for Record,²
CIA, March 20, 1996.
Alexei Lebedev, in ³Russian Weapons Plutonium Storage Termed Unsafe by
Minatom Official,² Nucleonics Week, April 28, 1994.
Weclliam C. Potter, ³Arms Control Today,² Monterey Institute of
Internation Studies, October 1995.
Paul Woessner, ³Nuclear Material Trafficking: An Interim Assessment, ³
Bridgeway
In order to sustain a vibrant economy, the government needs to help the poor with their resources. The poor are poor not because they don’t work, but because government has failed to provide wages that American families can survive on. Cost can be an issue but the cost to subsidize the workers with low-wage jobs are higher (Kukathus 49). Acknowledging ethical and reli...
...nto the events surround Rocky Flats as well as the status of current nuclear operations.
Studies are still being done at both sites and radioactive material is still being monitored.
Both sides of the war had suffered tremendous losses and the numbers would have continued to grow over the course of the war. By choosing to drop the atomic bomb on Japan, I believe the lives saved in the long run outweigh the initial number of lives lost. There is no way to put a price of one human life against another, but the total number of deaths prevented could have been multitudes compared to the hundred thousand killed in the atomic blasts. From the numbers alone, I support President Truman’s utilitarian
...ved to American soil, the use of the atomic bombs are justified. There probably is not a leader who would not go to any length to protect his or her country. Truman did what he believed he had to make his country move on and to end World War II.
clearly isn’t justified in dropping the atomic bombs on Japanese cities, but there must be reasons why they did so anyways. Maybe they simply felt tired of their fear of kamikaze planes constantly putting their safety in jeopardy (document 3). Maybe they just wanted to give the Japanese the same inhumane treatment they were giving the Chinese in Nanking (document 1). Still, what they did was much worse than what the Japanese did and extraordinarily reckless. Undoubtedly, they had better solutions they could’ve taken. For example, since every other country formerly part of the Axis Powers had surrendered, they could’ve used threatened Japan with the combined militaries of all the Allies’ militaries. They said, “Therefore we recommend that before this weapon be used without restriction…its powers should be…demonstrated, and the Japanese nation should be given the opportunity to consider the consequences of further refusal to surrender.” This approach also would’ve been supported by international law, and it wouldn’t have introduced atomic warfare to the world. Who knows what the U.S. government was thinking when they decided to drop their atomic bombs, but it is clear that they acted
Truman and America was justified they wanted to end the war and make sure they didn't have to send soldiers to japan. There are many issues regarding whether dropping the bombs was the right choice. I believe dropping the bombs was the correct choice there was no other way to end the war with less fatalities than to drop the bomb. Do I think it was good thing they dropped the bombs? No, it was no fair to drop the bombs on innocent people. We did it to get out of the war not just to kill a bunch of innocent people. Dropping the bombs on hiroshima and kawasaki was good choice. hiroshima, an embarkation port and industrial center that was the site of a major military headquarters.(Atomic Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki)
The Manhattan project cost $2 billion to create the atomic bomb by a group of Allied scientist. James Conant was a scientist who played a key role in the Manhattan Project (Oxford 173). He advocated in June 1945, that President Truman should order the use of the newly completed atomic bomb on a Japanese war plant (Oxford 173). The first successful test of the atomic bomb was in New Mexico, while Truman was at the Potsdam Conference. At the Potsdam Conference he attempted to use the bomb as leverage in negotiations with Joseph Stalin; this only made the relationship between the two countries worse.
Imagine an atomic bomb falling into your city and in seconds there is no longer a city or place you used to call home. Would you think it was right for someone to drop an atomic bomb on you even if you were in the middle of a world war? It was not right for Truman to drop the bomb because he didn’t know the consequences of the atomic bomb and what damage it would do to the people and land. Truman could’ve easily invaded Japan instead of dropping the A-bomb.
Harry S. Truman’s decision to drop the atomic bombs on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki remains a much debated topic to this very day and might not ever be solved. When discussing the topic, many unanswered questions come to mind. While a majority of people support and understand Truman’s hard to decision to drop the bombs, others just see it as an immoral act. Although many things came into play when Truman was trying to make a decision, the fact that he would save nearly a quarter of a million American lives ultimately outweighed all the other factors.
In order to improve the economy and raise the poor standard to higher economic status, we must not ignore the poor. We must understand them and leave the punitive attitude in the past.
It was the morning of August 6, 1945, 8:15 a.m., the bomb exploded. American bomber dropped the world’s first atomic bomb over the Japanese city of Hiroshima, immediately killed 80,000 people. Three days later, a second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki, killing an estimated 40,000 people. Was the decision by President Truman to end war with Japan, by using the atomic bomb the correct decision?
Some people will argue “yes”, while others will argue “no”. In my opinion it was justifiable for the US to drop the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Why do I say so? America had simply no other choice but to act against Japan in August 1945. The atomic bomb was dropped on Japan for no any other reason than for the fact that America was still fighting the war. When looking back then, Truman’s train of thought was to bring the war to a rapid end. A historian, David McCullough, said: “People living ‘”back then” didn’t know they were living “back then”, and to judge the decisions of people in 1945 by the standards of 2015 is not only a-historical, but it is pointless.” (Source: McCullough, 2015). He further said: “Truman and his advisers made the only decision they could have made and considering in the context of World War II, it wasn’t really much of a difficult decision at all”. (Source: McCullough,
There is currently 45,000 tons of spent nuclear material sitting in sites across the country, a number that is expected to double by the year 2035 (Kallen, 2005). Radioactive waste material comes in two forms: low-level waste and high-level waste. Low-level
Gravity (n): extreme or alarming importance; seriousness. As people grow and mature, they encounter experiences that force them to make decisions full of great gravity. These decisions cause them to be extremely careful when choosing their own paths in life. In August of 1945, atomic bombs descended upon Hiroshima and Nagasaki, causing over 40,000 casualties. As America decided to drop the atomic bombs, a massive controversy was created within the country. Most officials attempted to hide the fact of the atomic bombs, hoping that secrecy would prevent problems. As well, many feared the consequences, such as death, and extended war, would arise due to the effect of these bombs. Finally, many believed that releasing the bombs aided in the ending