International Arrangements and Control for the Peaceful Applications of Nuclear Explosives

Peaceful applications of nuclear explosives is a subject dealt with in the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, which has recently entered into force. It is an issue that is intimately connected with arms control and the development of weapons technology.

In this study Dr. Marvin Kalkstein, of the State University of New York, discusses the implications of peaceful nuclear explosives for arms control and disarmament. He considers in particular which international arrangements and control measures might be appropriate.

The study is in three main sections. It begins with a description of the ‘state of the art’ of nuclear explosives technology. After reviewing proposed uses of nuclear explosives and their potential economic and social merits, the first section outlines the technical problems which remain to be solved before actual applications will be feasible. The second section of the study deals in detail with the arms control problems posed by peaceful nuclear explosives. The core of these is the difficulty of making arrangements for testing and use of nuclear explosives which will be compatible with the terms and purposes of the existing nuclear test ban or with a future comprehensive test ban treaty. The last section examines the weapons control problems and some of the financial and political alternatives which would be involved in establishing international arrangements for conducting peaceful applications of nuclear explosives.