Non-Proliferation vs Counterproliferation

Seeking Peace in a Hostile World

Non-proliferation is the attempt to prevent the spread of nuclear, biological, and chemical (NBC) weapons through international treaties and cooperative efforts to control NBC related technologies. The 1968 Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) acknowledged five nuclear power states and declared that other nations who joined the treaty would forego development of nuclear weapons. It implied the ultimate goal of all nations to be free of nuclear weapons. To enforce this treaty the International Atomic Energy Association (IAEA) conducts inspections of a nation’s declared nuclear related facilities. However, inspections are not one hundred percent reliable, as Iraq demonstrated in the 1980’s by conducting a secret nuclear program.