Nuclear Proliferation: India and Pakistan

Nuclear Proliferation in India and Pakistan:

• India and Pakistan were seperate states in 1948.
• Nuclear vertical proliferation meant that more nuclear weapons were becoming available to more and more states, especially developing states.
• This was due to the rise in technology and rising economies of the devloping states (industrial revolution).
• India built its first nuclear device in 1974
• Pakistan tested their long-range missile in 1989.
• Nuclear weapons spreading to India and Pakistan created a BALANCE OF POWER.
  • This is because there has always been an underlining conflict between the 2 states, so they will less liely to go to war now as they both have nuclear capacity.
  • Evident in 1988, when India and Pakistan signed an agreement not to attack eachother's nuclear facilities.
  • This created balance of power.

The arms race between India and Pakistan dramatically escalated in the 1990s:

• This is because in May 1998, India conducted underground nuclear tests in the western desert state of Rajasthan, near Pakistan.
  • Therefore, it seemed that India was ignoring the agreement signed in 1988.
• In response, Pakistan conducted 6 tests in Baluchistan near India.
• The 2 states were both criticized by the international community, for their conflict, due to fear of nuclear confrontation (just like the COld War).
  • E.g. The UN Security Council condemned them for the tests and urged them to stop all nuclear programmes.
• As a result, the USA and Japan froze foreign aid, loans and trade to India and Pakistan.
• Therefore, the relationship between India and Pakistan in 1999 began to improve, as they signed the Lahore accord.