... path—eventually signing about a dozen treaties and agreements between 1972 and 2010—without assurances that other states would not substantially expand their arsenals. The NPT is closely associated with a set of agreements restricting and banning nuclear tests (in 1974–1996). It also serves as the foundation for six nuclear-weapon-free zones [
5
] established between 1968 and 2009, which cover either fully or partially every continent except Europe and include 177 countries. The NPT relies on ...
For the CIA, the success of the French nuclear program is the development of nuclear energy for the civil sector
On 19 November 1959, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) published a scientific intelligence report on “
The French Nuclear Weapons Program
” (CIA/SI 47-59) analyzing the state of progress of the French research in this specific field. The secret report describes France’s capabilities in plutonium production, extraction, isotope separation and the development of nuclear weapons as...
In early January 2016, front pages around the world carried numerous stories on Pyongyang’s hydrogen bomb test. The flurry of comments that followed the DPRK’s announcement of conducting “a hydrogen bomb test” highlighted several major issues, namely the unpredictable nature of Kim Jong-un’s regime; the unanimous condemnation of Pyongyang for the provocative act and subsequent calls for punishment; doubts as to whether the tested device was really a thermonuclear one;...
