SOUTH ASIAN VOICES

APLN member Manpreet Sethi reviews Nina Tannenwald’s recent policy paper for the Stimson Center on the normative inhibition against the first use of nuclear weapons in South Asia. The nuclear taboo, Sethi argues, is “at risk everywhere” — not merely at risk in South Asia alone. Read here.

“The constraining influence of the taboo in South Asia remains unchanged. India accords it significance and has said so; Pakistan does too, but compulsions of its nuclear strategy do not allow a full-throated endorsement. For both countries, though, as for others, the perception of the strength or weakness of the taboo is shaped by the nuclear behavior of others, especially that of major states. Of course, nuclear behavior of India and Pakistan also adds to this perception. Therefore, the calculation of the taboo’s weight in any region cannot be done in isolation from the global context.”

Image: PxHere.