The war over Iran’s nuclear program is accelerating a shift that could reshape global security: more countries are starting to think they need nuclear weapons.
From Berlin to Seoul, governments that long relied on US protection are now debating whether they need their own deterrent.
Germany and Poland are exploring closer ties to France’s nuclear umbrella. Support for an independent arsenal is rising in South Korea.
China and Russia are warning about proliferation even as they upgrade their own arsenals. The arms-control architecture built at the end of the Cold War is eroding without replacement.
Debate is shifting even in Japan, where nuclear weapons have long been taboo.
That’s happening as President Donald Trump pairs an aggressive posture toward adversaries with a more transactional approach to US allies. His administration is weighing a return to nuclear testing after more than three decades, while also considering sharing sensitive enrichment technology with Saudi Arabia, according to documents seen by Bloomberg.
In January, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists moved its Doomsday Clock to 85 seconds to midnight — the closest to catastrophe it’s been to date.
The conflict with Iran is reinforcing the appeal of nuclear weapons even as US and Israeli strikes are intended to stop Tehran from getting the bomb.
They underscore a broader lesson: without an atomic deterrent, even an advanced program may not be enough to prevent attack.
Ukraine surrendered the Soviet-era warheads on its soil and later faced invasion by Russia. The US helped topple Libya’s leader less than a decade after he gave up his nuclear program.
North Korea, by contrast, built a small but viable arsenal that has helped secure its regime despite years of confrontation with Washington.
The more nations that get the bomb, the harder it is to control how it’s used — and the more dangerous the world becomes. — Peter Martin