Every country that has nukes means more risk that some loose cannon sets off a nuke. That is why nuclear non-proliferation agreements are so important.
To demonstrate, what if Saddam and Iran had had nukes during the Iran-Iraq War? Saddam used chemical weapons against the Kurds. Would he use nukes? I genuinely don’t know, the man was apparently a psychopath. Would you actually want someone like that to have nukes?
Putin, as part of the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, said that if any countries tried to stop Russia, they would face “such consequences that you have never encountered in your history”. It’s hard to take that two ways.
Also, much of the point isn’t who has threatened to use them. The more nuclear weapons material floating around, the more chance that it lands in the hands of someone with no compunctions about actually using it. The Doomsday Clock gets closer to midnight every time another country gets nukes.
Maybe world leaders will finally be pushed towards diplomacy. As far as I see it, the region needs deterrence against foreign aggression. Just look at what Russia did to Ukraine after it gave up its nukes, or what the US did to Iraq and Libya. I don’t want that to happen to any other country in the region. Iran, Saudi Arabia and others all have a right to nuclear weapons. Israel already introduced them to the region and they are as fanatical and genocidal as any country can be.
Nukes are an inevitability following sanctions. North Korea was sanctioned to hell and back by major international players before they developed nukes… At that point, they really might as well go all the way. The same is true for Iran, and the same will be true for any upcoming player with nukes.
The weaponization of sanctions for political gain rather than to act as a counterbalance against actual world-ending threats will be the death of us.
Every country that has nukes means more risk that some loose cannon sets off a nuke. That is why nuclear non-proliferation agreements are so important.
To demonstrate, what if Saddam and Iran had had nukes during the Iran-Iraq War? Saddam used chemical weapons against the Kurds. Would he use nukes? I genuinely don’t know, the man was apparently a psychopath. Would you actually want someone like that to have nukes?
The only country that ever used them is the US. The only countries that its elected politicians regularly threaten to use them are the US and Israel.
Putin, as part of the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, said that if any countries tried to stop Russia, they would face “such consequences that you have never encountered in your history”. It’s hard to take that two ways.
Also, much of the point isn’t who has threatened to use them. The more nuclear weapons material floating around, the more chance that it lands in the hands of someone with no compunctions about actually using it. The Doomsday Clock gets closer to midnight every time another country gets nukes.
Maybe world leaders will finally be pushed towards diplomacy. As far as I see it, the region needs deterrence against foreign aggression. Just look at what Russia did to Ukraine after it gave up its nukes, or what the US did to Iraq and Libya. I don’t want that to happen to any other country in the region. Iran, Saudi Arabia and others all have a right to nuclear weapons. Israel already introduced them to the region and they are as fanatical and genocidal as any country can be.
Nukes are an inevitability following sanctions. North Korea was sanctioned to hell and back by major international players before they developed nukes… At that point, they really might as well go all the way. The same is true for Iran, and the same will be true for any upcoming player with nukes.
The weaponization of sanctions for political gain rather than to act as a counterbalance against actual world-ending threats will be the death of us.