Nuclear weapons
A nuclear weapon is a device designed to produce explosive energy through nuclear fission, nuclear fusion, or a combination of the two (such as in a hydrogen bomb).
Implications
Deterrence
Suspected nuclear states
Israel
Israel's possession of nuclear weapons has sometimes been referred to as an "open secret".[1] In 1986, Israeli Mordechai Vanunu published evidence in the London Sunday Times that Israel had been developing nuclear weapons. Days before the article was set to be published, he was kidnapped by the Mossad and taken from London to Israel to stand trial for treason.[2] The Israeli court found him guilty and sentenced him to 18 years in prison.[3] Israel may have anywhere between 80[1] and 400[4] nuclear warheads. In 2013, former Knesset member Avraham Burg, defying official policy, openly admitted to their existence and called Israel's policy of ambiguity "outdated and childish".[5][1]
1979 Vela incident
On September 22, 1979, a US "Vela" satellite designed to enforce a ban on nuclear testing detected a signal that seemed to indicate a nuclear explosion had occurred somewhere near the South Atlantic ocean.[6] After the events of 1967 and 1973, the two apartheid states had come to share many interests. In 1978, an official yearbook of the South African government stated, "Israel and South Africa have one thing above all else in common: they are both situated in a predominantly hostile world inhabited by dark peoples."[7]
The signal has been dismissed by many analysts as a sensor malfunction[6], but there is significant evidence to suggest otherwise. Groups that have argued that the signal indicates a nuclear detonation include a 1979 CIA-sponsored panel of scientists[6] and many historians. Data indicating such a test include the detection of elevated radiation levels in New Zealand sheep, who would have been downwind of the blast site;[8]
The United States, which had a vested interest in protecting two close allies from scrutiny after the Partial Test Ban Treaty had been in effect for more than a decade, claimed that the data was inconclusive and neglected to investigate further, leading a member of Carter's own administration to argue privately that the government's lenience would appear to other states as outright complicity.[9]
Iran
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Borger, Julian (15 Jan 2014). "The truth about Israel's secret nuclear arsenal". the Guardian. Archived from the original on 30 Jul 2023. Retrieved 3 Aug 2023.
- ↑ "Pakistan, Arms Race, Deterrence". Encyclopedia Britannica. 26 Jul 1999. Retrieved 3 Aug 2023.
- ↑ Black, Ian (28 Mar 2018). "Mordechai Vanunu gets 18 years for treason – archive, 28 March 1988". the Guardian. Retrieved 3 Aug 2023.
- ↑ Revesz, Rachael (16 Sep 2016). "Leaked email reveals Israel has '200 nukes'". The Independent. Retrieved 3 Aug 2023.
- ↑ Fiske, Gavriel; Sharon, Jeremy; Bachner, Michael (8 Dec 2013). "Avraham Burg panned for breaking 'nuclear ambiguity'". The Times of Israel. Archived from the original on 9 Jun 2023. Retrieved 3 Aug 2023.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Burr; Cohen, eds. (6 Dec 2016). "The Vela Incident: South Atlantic Mystery Flash in September 1979 Raised Questions about Nuclear Test". National Security Archive. Retrieved 3 Aug 2023.
- ↑ South African State Department of Information, Official Yearbook, 1978.
- ↑ Johnston, Martin (13 Aug 2018). "Study: Radioactive sheep point to nuclear blast". NZ Herald. Retrieved 3 Aug 2023.
- ↑ Memorandum from Gerard C. Smith to Brzezinski, "Possible Israeli-South African Nuclear Connection," 17 September 1977, Secret. Apud National Security Archive, 2016.