Introduction
Nuclear weapons should be abolished or not has been debated since the making of these weapons. This is one of highly debated and disputed issues. There are a number of people who believe that nuclear weapons should exist because they are necessary for the safety and maintaining peace in the world. A number of people, on the other hand, believe that nuclear weapons can only destroy the humanity. They are a threat to the world and they should be abolished in order to make a peaceful world. This research paper aims to propose a discussion on nuclear weapons and examines why nuclear weapons should be abolished because of its dangerous threats to the humanity and this world.
Background
Nuclear weapons were used in Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the whole world came to know the disastrous consequences of using nuclear weapons. People of Japan have witnessed the death in form of nuclear weapons and they are still affected by the disastrous effects of nuclear weapons. Even scientists who worked in America’s Manhattan project could not imagine what have they created. They later realized that they have unleashed a monster that is going to haunt the world forever. Today nuclear program is proliferating quickly. Apart from nations of nuclear club, various other nations and groups are suspect of running nuclear programs either directly or indirectly. The biggest question arises that what will happen to the world if terrorists access such ghastliest weapons (Sokolski).
Relevance of Nuclear weapons
Nuclear weapons have not done any good to the humanity. Today nuclear weapons are so powerful and advanced that these weapons can devastate the world in fraction of seconds. World’s two most powerful nations USA and Russia have maximum number of nuclear weapons. These nations participated in the run that was started during the Second World War and incensed once the war was over. USA and USSR participated in the race for the dominance and status of the world superpower.
USA and USSR collected a huge arsenal of deadliest nuclear weapons in the post world war era. These nuclear weapons are ghastliest and can erase nations from the map of this world. The nuclear arsenal of these two nations is growing and none of them have succeeded in achieving the desired result of having these nuclear weapons. Both of these nations have tried to negotiate on the issue of nuclear disarmament for several times but nothing was achieved on this issue. Due to lack of transparent and honest efforts of both these nations, nuclear proliferation continued (O'Hanlon).
History suggests us that nuclear weapons have not succeeded in achieving their so-called targets of safety and world peace. There should be no problem in understanding that if these nuclear weapons are so deadly and can destroy the world, there is no question that they can contribute in the world peace. United States of America have tried to make its monopoly on the nuclear weapons and designed various programs with intention to stop nuclear proliferation but it could not stop India, Pakistan, Korea and Iran from making nuclear weapons.
Today the biggest concern is that nuclear weapons are in immature hands. Irresponsible country like Pakistan that sheltered world’s most wanted terrorist, Osama Bin Laden is equipped with nuclear weapons. Such weapons can reach into hands of terrorists because extremists and terrorists play a great role in the politics of Pakistan. Terrorist organizations have a say in the policy making of Pakistan and it is not a hidden fact now. United States of America has reiterated this fact at various occasions.
Every nuclear power says that it has nuclear weapons with some goals. Usually safety and world peace are cited as reasons of having nuclear weapons. None of nations have succeeded in achieving the so-called targets of having nuclear weapons. America could not stop Cuba from capturing Grenada and Pakistan still sends terrorists into India irrespective of the fact that both nations are equipped with nuclear weapons. India and Pakistan are indulged in a chronic border dispute and they keep threatening each other regularly.
United States of America and NATO could not stop Russia from creating ruckus in Ukraine and Russia could not stop Americans from intervening in the Afghanistan. The bottom line is that nuclear weapons have failed in making peace in the world but the bigger issue is whether the world can sustain if these weapons are gone in hands of terrorists and they use it somewhere. Terrorists and religious extremists are pain for the humanity across the world and it is beyond imagination to consider repercussions if nuclear weapons are accessed by these terrorists (Krieger).
The world has witnessed two world wars but they were fought conventionally. The world cannot sustain the third world war and if nuclear weapons are used, that will be the darkest chapter of the human history. Today, nuclear weapons are so deadly and advanced that the world will not be able to sustain a nuclear war and its existence will be in danger. In light of such situation, there is a need to take wise steps and all responsible nations should come together for the nuclear disarmament (Daley).
Negotiation is the key to all disputes and all nations should discuss the issue in a serious, honest and transparent manner. Every nation should realize that nuclear weapons are not useful in maintaining world safety and peace. No sovereign nation fears other if it has a strong leadership and this fact has been proved in a plenty of incidents. Saddam did not fear America’s nuclear power nor did Fidel Castro care about America’s nuclear power. They did what they thought appropriate.
After observing various related aspects of the nuclear weapons, it can be concluded that nuclear weapons are a threat to the humanity and they should be abolished. There should be a thorough debate on the issue and all nuclear weapons should be abolished in the monitoring of a high power committee under the guidance of the United Nations. The world can sustain conventional wars because their effect is confined but nuclear weapons are mass murderers. A majority of people who were killed in Hiroshima and Nagasaki had nothing to do with war. They were innocent people. In such a situation the nuclear weapons should be abolished. There are a number of reasons why they should not be existed in a civilized world like ours.
Works Cited
Daley, Tad. Apocalypse Never: Forging the Path to a Nuclear Weapon-Free World. Piscataway, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2010.
Krieger, David. The Challenge of Abolishing Nuclear Weapons. New Jersey: Transaction Publishers, 2011.
O'Hanlon, Michael E. "Is a World Without Nuclear Weapons Really Possible? ." 4 May 2010. brookings. 11 December 2014 <http://www.brookings.edu/research/opinions/2010/05/04-global-zero-ohanlon>.
Sokolski, Henry D. Nuclear Power's Global Expansion: Weighing Its Costs and Risks. USA: Strategic Studies Institute, 2010.
