The Nuclear Taboo

The United States and the Non-Use of Nuclear Weapons Since 1945
Erscheinungsjahr 2010
ISBN: 978-0-521-52428-5
Verlag: Cambridge University Press

Buch, Englisch, Band 87, 472 Seiten, Paperback, Format (B × H): 152 mm x 229 mm, Gewicht: 760 g

Reihe: Cambridge Studies in International Relations

Why have nuclear weapons not been used since Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945? Nina Tannenwald disputes the conventional answer of 'deterrence' in favour of what she calls a nuclear taboo - a widespread inhibition on using nuclear weapons - which has arisen in global politics. Drawing on newly released archival sources, Tannenwald traces the rise of the nuclear taboo, the forces that produced it, and its influence, particularly on US leaders. She analyzes four critical instances where US leaders considered using nuclear weapons (Japan 1945, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and the Gulf War 1991) and examines how the nuclear taboo has repeatedly dissuaded US and other world leaders from resorting to these 'ultimate weapons'. Through a systematic analysis, Tannenwald challenges conventional conceptions of deterrence and offers a compelling argument on the moral bases of nuclear restraint as well as an important insight into how nuclear war can be avoided in the future.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Tannenwald, Nina

Fachgebiete

• Sozialwissenschaften Politikwissenschaft Militärwesen Nationale und Internationale Sicherheits- und Verteidigungspolitik
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Weltgeschichte & Geschichte einzelner Länder und Gebietsräume Geschichte einzelner Länder Amerikanische Geschichte
• Sozialwissenschaften Politikwissenschaft Internationale Beziehungen Konflikt- und Friedensforschung, Rüstungskontrolle, Abrüstung
• Interdisziplinäres Wissenschaften Wissenschaften Interdisziplinär Friedens- und Konfliktforschung
• Sozialwissenschaften Politikwissenschaft Militärwesen Ausrüstung & Waffen
• Sozialwissenschaften Politikwissenschaft Internationale Beziehungen Ost-West Beziehungen

Inhaltsverzeichnis

1. Introduction: the tradition of nuclear non-use; 2. Explaining non-use; 3. Hiroshima and the origins of the nuclear taboo; 4. The Korean War: the emerging taboo; 5. The rise of the nuclear taboo, 1953–1960; 6. Nuclear weapons and the Vietnam War; 7. Institutionalizing the taboo, 1960–1989; 8. The 1991 Gulf War; 9. The taboo in the post-Cold War world; 10. Conclusion: the prospects for the nuclear taboo.

Über Autor(innen)

Tannenwald, Nina
Nina Tannenwald is associate research professor at the Watson Institute for International Studies at Brown University.