All articles tagged with #nuclear arms race
The SIPRI Yearbook 2025 reports a resurgence in nuclear modernization programs among the nine nuclear-armed states, reversing long-term disarmament trends and raising concerns about a new, more complex arms race driven by advanced technologies like AI, cyber, and space capabilities, which could increase the risk of nuclear conflict.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has warned of a "humanitarian catastrophe of epic proportions" as the world plunges into a new nuclear arms race. This comes as North Korea accuses the United States of pushing it to the brink of war. Guterres called on countries to strengthen their commitments to reducing and eliminating nuclear weapons, emphasizing the need for nuclear-weapon states to lead the way. Meanwhile, North Korea claims that the US-South Korea alliance is conspiring to provoke a nuclear war on the Korean peninsula. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute has reported an increase in investment in nuclear arsenals by the world's nuclear powers, signaling a potential reversal of the declining trend in the number of nuclear warheads.
The world is drifting towards a new nuclear arms race, which will likely be harder to stop than the Cold War due to the complexity of three-sided deterrence involving a rising China. The era of nuclear arms control agreements between the United States and Russia is ending, with America's abandonment of agreements, Russia's invasion of Ukraine, China's nuclear build-up, and disruptive technologies being the main reasons. The expiration of the New START treaty in 2026 may remove the last major restraint on the world's nuclear stockpile. The tensions are further exacerbated by the development of hypersonic missiles, improvements in sensors and accuracy, and the spread of artificial intelligence.