Book - Stimson Center

The Lure and Pitfalls of MIRVs: From the First to the Second Nuclear Age

| May 2016

"In the second nuclear age, no less than the first, there are no realistic prospects for banning multiple-warhead missiles. China has started to deploy such missiles, and India and Pakistan are likely to cross this threshold as well. The motivations behind these steps will determine how extensively nuclear arsenals will grow and how pernicious the effects of stockpile growth will become. Success in dampening the negative repercussions of multiple-warhead missiles will rest on two foundations. The first is improved bilateral relations among the contestants. One of the responsibilities of states that possess nuclear weapons is to pursue nuclear risk reduction measures (NRRMs) with other nuclear-armed states, especially those with which they have previously fought wars. By this yardstick, China, India, and Pakistan can be found wanting..."

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About This Book

The Lure and Pitfalls of MIRVs: From the First to the Second Nuclear Age

The Lure and Pitfalls of MIRVs: From the First to the Second Nuclear Age
More Information
For more information on this publication: Belfer Communications Office
For Academic Citation: Ahmed, Mansoor. The Lure and Pitfalls of MIRVs: From the First to the Second Nuclear Age. Edited by Krepon, Michael, Travis Wheeler and Shane Mason. Washington, D.C.: Stimson Center, May 2016.

The Author

Mansoor Ahmed

Mansoor Ahmed

  • Honorary Lecturer in the Coral Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs/College of Asia and the Pacific, Australian National University
  • Former Associate, Project on Managing the Atom (MTA), August 2018–June 2019; Former Postdoctoral Fellow, International Security Program (ISP)/MTA, July 2016–July 2018; Former Stanton Nuclear Security Junior Faculty Fellow, ISP/MTA, 2015–2016
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