Book Review: The Long Shadow: Nuclear Weapons and Security in 21st Century Asia

{
  "authors": [
    "George Perkovich"
  ],
  "type": "legacyinthemedia",
  "centerAffiliationAll": "dc",
  "centers": [
    "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace"
  ],
  "collections": [
    "Korean Peninsula"
  ],
  "englishNewsletterAll": "",
  "nonEnglishNewsletterAll": "",
  "primaryCenter": "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
  "programAffiliation": "NPP",
  "programs": [
    "Nuclear Policy"
  ],
  "projects": [],
  "regions": [
    "South Asia",
    "India",
    "Pakistan",
    "East Asia",
    "South Korea"
  ],
  "topics": [
    "Nuclear Policy"
  ]
}

In The Media

Book Review: The Long Shadow: Nuclear Weapons and Security in 21st Century Asia

Since acquiring atomic weapons, India, Pakistan and North Korea have not engaged in major warfare. But nuclear deterrence alone does not buy peace — diplomacy must keep the balance.

By George Perkovich

Published on Apr 2, 2009

Source: Nature

The cold war distorted definitions of 'normal' nuclear behaviour. The giant antagonists, the United States and the Soviet Union, built gargantuan arsenals poised for launch at a moment's notice. They poked and prodded each other until the Cuban missile crisis of 1962 chastened them to give arms control a chance. Notwithstanding a series of treaties meant to manage their nuclear competition and help shape a global nuclear order — from the Partial Test Ban Treaty in 1963 through to the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty II 30 years later — Washington DC and Moscow ordered the construction of thousands more nuclear weapons and kept them ready for use, even when no crisis was at hand.

By the mid-1970s, China, Israel and India had nuclear explosives, and Pakistan and South Africa were preparing to join them. These nations treated nuclear weapons differently. They built relatively few, did not deploy them for immediate use and kept them largely out of political view. South Africa disarmed in the early 1990s, and North Korea became nuclear-armed. Of the nine countries that have nuclear weapons today, the United States and Russia are hardly typical.

Read the full article in Nature.

Nuclear Policy South Asia India Pakistan East Asia South Korea

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.

More Work from Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Commentary
Emissary
What Happens When a Conservative Movement Continues on Without a Leader?
Lessons from Korea’s political right.
Darcie Draudt-Véjares
Article
South-South AI Collaboration: Advancing Practical Pathways
The India AI Impact Summit offers a timely opportunity to experiment with and formalize new models of cooperation.
Lakshmee Sharma, Jane Munga
Paper
Escalation Dynamics Under the Nuclear Shadow—India’s Approach
An exploration into how India and Pakistan have perceived each other’s manipulations, or lack thereof, of their nuclear arsenals.
Rakesh Sood
Commentary
Carnegie Politika
For Putin, Increasing Russia’s Nuclear Threat Matters More Than the Triad’s Modernization
For Putin, upgrading Russia’s nuclear forces was a secondary goal. The main aim was to gain an advantage over the West, including by strengthening the nuclear threat on all fronts. That made growth in missile arsenals and a new arms race inevitable.
Maxim Starchak
Commentary
Emissary
The Trump-Modi Trade Deal Won’t Magically Restore U.S.-India Trust
Washington and New Delhi should be proud of their putative deal. But international politics isn’t the domain of unicorns and leprechauns, and collateral damage can’t simply be wished away.
Evan A. Feigenbaum

More Work from Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

People yelling and holding Yoon Again banners

Commentary

Emissary

What Happens When a Conservative Movement Continues on Without a Leader?

Lessons from Korea’s political right.

Darcie Draudt-Véjares

Article

South-South AI Collaboration: Advancing Practical Pathways

The India AI Impact Summit offers a timely opportunity to experiment with and formalize new models of cooperation.

Lakshmee Sharma, Jane Munga

Paper

Escalation Dynamics Under the Nuclear Shadow—India’s Approach

An exploration into how India and Pakistan have perceived each other’s manipulations, or lack thereof, of their nuclear arsenals.

Rakesh Sood

Commentary

Carnegie Politika

For Putin, Increasing Russia’s Nuclear Threat Matters More Than the Triad’s Modernization

For Putin, upgrading Russia’s nuclear forces was a secondary goal. The main aim was to gain an advantage over the West, including by strengthening the nuclear threat on all fronts. That made growth in missile arsenals and a new arms race inevitable.

Maxim Starchak

Wide shot of Trump and Modi, with Trump pointing

Commentary

Emissary

The Trump-Modi Trade Deal Won’t Magically Restore U.S.-India Trust

Washington and New Delhi should be proud of their putative deal. But international politics isn’t the domain of unicorns and leprechauns, and collateral damage can’t simply be wished away.

Evan A. Feigenbaum