42+C.+Analyze+the+consequences+of+the+Soviet+Union’s+breakup.++C.+the+danger+of+the+spread+of+nuclear+technology+and+other+technologies+of+mass+destruction+to+rogue+states+and+terrorist+organizations

Editors: Michael H and Tom C.


 * 42 C. Analyze the consequences of the Soviet Union’s breakup. C. the danger of the spread of nuclear technology and other technologies of mass destruction to rogue states and terrorist organizations:**

The destruction of nuclear weapons was made aware in 1945 when the USA ended World War 2 with Japan by dropping atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The bombings killed over 200,000 people. During the Cold War the US was competing with the Soviet Union for power of nuclear weapons. The US feared that a nuclear war with the Soviet Union was inevitable and would cause mass destruction across the world, a.k.a. a NUCLEAR HOLOCAUST! or APOCALYPSE! An event such feared was almost made possible during the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, when the United States discovered that the U.S.S.R. was going to supply its allied country Cuba with medium-range and intermediate-range nuclear missiles. These missiles had the ability to strike most of the United States and if supplied to Cuba could have created a nuclear war. The US decided not to act upon war but blockade the ocean around Cuba so no ships could make it in. Even today if nuclear weapons were put in the wrong hands, (such as terrorist groups) they could be used to create mass destruction.

It is very scary, for many reasons. One reason is if people use nuclear weapons, they could blow up the whole world. Also, with no one in charge, anybody could take these weapons or sell them to other countries. When the Soviet Union broke up many of the unstable supporters of the USSR gained control of arms which allowed these nations access to them. When all of the former USSR countries gained control of these weapons, the weapons enabled these terrorist countries to be much more dangerous.If the terrorist groups chose to, they could potentially start a third and by far the most dangerous world war. Countries such as Pakistan now are in the position to use nuclear weapons against their enemies (Pakistan v India).The soviet Union possessed the worlds largest inventory of cruise missiles and when it broke up it was spread through out the former countries of the USSR.One major consequence of the collapse of the soviet union is that the economy collapsed. Nothing of any quality was made in the Soviet Union so they had to import everything and so it was easy for anyone to buy there weapons.The collapse of the USSR radically changed the world's economic and political environment. The Soviet Union had the worlds largest inventory of nuclear weapons, which terrified everyone in the world. After nearly a year's negotiations, the U.S. and Russian governments finally reached an agreement on further reduction and limitation of nuclear weapon arms. The agreement will be signed on April 8, limiting the total number of warheads to less than 1,550. Overall, it is good for world peace and stability as well as the prevention of nuclear proliferation, but we shouldn't be over-optimistic about the treaty.That still doesn't mean that the people who made those nuclear bombs don't know how to make them again if they had to.The breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991 led to international concerns that Soviet nuclear weapons and nuclear material deployed in Belarus, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, and Russia would no longer be under the control of a strong central goverment. If the wrong country got their hands on nuclear technology, then they could potentially wipe out a country and take control of parts of the world. Russia and the other states of the former Soviet Union are not the only potential sources of nuclear weapons or materials. T oday, we face the possibility of two very different futures. A brighter, more peaceful future is surely within our reach, and the course is clear: stop making new weapons-grade materials, lock up the materials all over the world, and show countries they will be better off without nuclear weapons than with them. The strategic defense initiative is currently helping prevent nuclear attacks against countries.

The danger would be if a terrorist orginizaton got hold aof one of these weapons and shot it at a targeted counrty that could cause major conflicts such as Wars, and voilent actions against nations, and maybe even WW3.

Now that the super power the Soviet Union had broken apart the United States was deemed the new super power, and it also had the technology to create nuclear weapons. Which made people afraid that terrorists would steal this technology and use it wrongly.

It is because the command economy destroyed the Soviet Union's economics that they were willing to sell there nucleur weapons for high prices.

Nuclear technology spread dangerous fumes around the Soviet Union, so many things were starting to fail, and nothing was working out the way it should have for them.

With the break-up, many things had become corrupt and there was always the risk of nuclear technology being stolen or sold to rogue states/terrorist groups for money.

Although the threat of a nuclear attack involving hundreds or perhaps thousands of weapons from the former Soviet Union has died down a bit, another threat has arisen: the potential acquisition of nuclear materials or even nuclear weapons by states hostile to the United States or by terrorists intent on staging incidents harmful to the U.S.

The SDI (strategic defense system) is helping to stop nuclear attacks against countries.

Many countries have powerful nuclear weapons that they have created that can destroy most parts if not all of the world. The SDI was created to help lower the threat of these weapons being used.