APLN Policy Brief 21

The following is a summary. Click on the adjacent link to download the full brief.

All global nuclear risks and threats are present in the Asia-Pacific and, in some cases, have a more acute in presence in the region. Security complexes and the main drivers of nuclear weapons policy tend to be primarily regional rather than global. Asia, as the principal site of strategic rivalry in the second nuclear age, is the most likely to be the next theatre of nuclear war. The nuclear disarmament norm continues to be breached most egregiously in Asia, as the only continent where the number of warheads are growing. The most serious violations of the non-proliferation norm have occurred here in the last two decades, and it is the sole site of nuclear testing today. There is no architecture in place to promulgate and police regional regulatory norms and standards for the safe operation of nuclear reactors–and that is without delving into how Asia has some of the world’s most severe nuclear security vulnerabilities.

About the Author

Ramesh Thakur is Director, Centre for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament, and Professor in the Crawford School of Public Policy, The Australian National University; coConvenor, Asia–Pacific Leadership Network for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament; and Editor-in-Chief of Global Governance.

Image: Joyce Lee/APLN, Harisankar Sahoo.