The largest stock piles of nuclear power in the world have no limits on their arsenal. The New START treaty expired this week, and with it the limitations on the largest military weapon forces.
New START was a treaty between the United States and Russia that established limits on nuclear weapons. The treaty provided for communication about use, transportation, testing, and stock of nuclear weapons. The treaty meant general inspections and a collaborative agreement towards nuclear disarmament.
The treaty set the number of deployable nuclear warheads and missiles that each country could possess at 1,550, with no more than 700 land or sea missiles capable of carrying those weapons.
No agreement has been reached as the treaty expires. Russia offered a year-long extension, but President Trump deliberately neglected to respond. Instead, Trump remarked that he “will decide the path forward on nuclear arms control, which he will clarify on his own timeline.”
UN Secretary-General António Guterres warns that this is a “grave moment” for international peace and security. Nuclear deterrence is dying. The simple fact of possessing nuclear weapons is becoming less of a deterrent for military conflict. Nuclear proliferation is growing, with more countries possessing the knowledge and capability for nuclear powers.
Amid a time of conflict—the Russo-Ukrainian war, the Israel-Palestine War, and nearly 40 countries in active war against terror, drug wars, civil wars, and border conflicts—this is not the moment to be losing controls and regulations on nuclear power.
A new nuclear arms race is at the forefront of possibility, with not only the United States and Russia at odds, but with China in the picture as a nuclear powerhouse as well. If a new understanding is not reached, the world of nuclear warfare will be more real than ever.
The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists moved the Doomsday clock, which represents humanity’s proximity to global catastrophe, to 85 seconds to midnight; the closest it has ever been. How much time do we really have left?
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