Nuclear

Iran and the IAEA: Continuing Contentions

The latest IAEA report dated September 6, 2010 to the Board of Governors, delineating Iran’s compliance or otherwise with the provisions and requirements of the IAEA and UN Security Council (UNSC) resolutions, indicates that contentious issues have not been resolved. As sanctions tighten, the US, China and Russia have urged Iran to fully cooperate with the IAEA.

The Nuclear Posture Review: Not a Credible Game-Changer for Nuclear North Korea

The Nuclear Posture Review (NPR) emphasis two realities, first the challenge of nuclear terrorism and proliferation; and second, it affirms the end of the Cold War rivalries. But the “resetting” of relationship with Moscow had created an enemy vacuum for the U.S. To fill this gap, North Korea has been constructed as an enemy which justifies the continuity of the “nuclear umbrella” in the Northeast Asian region. But as an asymmetrical, surrogate enemy it is actually the pretext to maintain ‘critical bases’ in Northeast Asia which functions as hubs for U.S. global military power projection.

India’s Nuclear Command and Control: Perspectives from Organisation Theory

Command and control of nuclear weapons was the edifice upon which great power nuclear strategy was based. Empirical Cold War research later proved that this edifice was, in fact, only a power keg. Therefore, US non-proliferation-minded analysts propounded logical reasons for their claim that new nuclear nations will be unable to demonstrate prudence in nuclear weapons management. The unique Indian case, pronounced from the organisation theory perspective, proves to the contrary.

Japan’s Nuclear Policy at Crossroads

The emerging changes in the security calculus within the Korean Peninsula are forcing Japan to revisit its existing position on the nuclear issue. The changing security environment has triggered several debates within Japan on the nuclearisation of the island nation. Although, at present, domestic opinion within Japan is opposed to exercising the nuclear option, there has been a break in the hitherto established taboo to have an open debate on the country's nuclear policy.