Global Security: Weapons of Mass Destruction

Since the Cold War, introducing nuclear weapons into the global system was one of the biggest changes that created a global phenomenon even after the year 1945 to the contemporary global politics. It has shaped the crucial aspects of the strategic actions of the states and transformed the international system. After experiencing two catastrophic global conflagrations, the global system has not triggered major wars and intra-regional wars over the post-Cold War period. However, utilising nuclear weapons to prevent world war should be treated with great attention as there are prospects of nuclear proliferation globally. The traditional definition of security is being freedom from danger and risk. However, in this context of the global politics, it perceives ‘security’ as something that makes protection and creates sense of safeness. Thus throughout this essay, it will discuss the meaning of security in the means of how it was created through the influence of nuclear/ weapons of mass destruction (WMD). Firstly, it will analyse the changing attitudes of strategic studies post-Cold War in the developments of nuclear technology proliferation. Moreover, it will critically discuss the influences of the nuclear weapons towards the security model in relations to why states still seek to develop weapon of mass destruction (WMD) in the contemporary global politics.

Understanding the terror and recognising of the destruction capabilities of nuclear weapon in the contemporary era can be a challenge to the people of today as the last nuclear weapon detonated in 1945. Subsequently, it is important to observe the historical context of WMD development and study the intention of the WMD. 1940 was the year of the birth of the first nuclear arsenal named as ‘Ivy Mike’. American physicists and their leader Edward teller developed nuclear armaments that was first detonated in 1945, (Balogun, 2011 p.160) which was defined as; extreme scale immediate mass destruction.

The strategic