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This volume takes the metaphorical character of the Cold War seriously and charts how the bomb was used as a symbol for nuclear war at the very heart of this conflict. The contributions consider the historical relevance of the political, cultural and artistic ramifications of nuclear weapons as signifiers for a new type of conflict. Tis understanding of the metaphorical qualities of the Cold War is encapsulated in the notion of an imaginary war, or, more precisely, a war against the imagination. As an attack against the imagination, the nuclear threat forced politicians and ordinary people to accept the notion that preparations for nuclear annihilation would contribute towards peace, and that the existence of these weapons, and the anticipation of large-scale destruction that came with them, were an inescapable corollary of security, freedom and future prosperity on both sides of the Cold war divide.
As the only country to have been subjected to a nuclear attack, Japan’s relationship with nuclear weapons is complicated. The anti-nuclear norm is deeply embedded in Japanese society, but Japan’s alliance with the US is characterised by consistent cooperation on nuclear weapons. The main focus of this cooperation today is extended nuclear deterrence, but for many decades
Situated in one of the most militarised regions in the world, South Korea has a long-standing relationship with nuclear weapons that is evident in three domains. The first is that South Korea initiated and subsequently shelved an indigenous nuclear weapons programme. Fearing abandonment and looking to reinforce South Korea’s capacity for military self-reliance in the face
Introduction This book is made up of a series of partially self-contained, partially overlapping chapters, each looking at an aspect of the question at hand. Each chapter attempts to illuminate the whole or a goodly part of the spread of nuclear weapons and how to curb it, but from a particular perspective. The chapters are like a series of photographs of a particular three-dimensional object taken from different angles. In one way this should make the book easier to read, in that it can be dipped into piecemeal. Even so, a reader encountering an unsupported
war and peace. Nuclear weapons were crucial for these multiple meanings of the Cold War: and the ‘bomb’ itself became the central metaphor of the Cold War. It was the harbinger of destruction, the symbol of what became a vast arsenal of power that seemed to threaten the very existence of humanity. But it was also, by its very destructiveness, the guarantor of peace: the way both blocs could ‘deter’ aggression, providing peace through strength. Living ‘under the shadow’ of the bomb signified anxiety and dread, and the image of the mushroom cloud became the central
Introduction: nuclear cinema between normality and catastrophe Given the number of accidents that have taken place in nuclear power plants around the world since the commercial use of the technology became widespread in the 1950s, it is surprising how few films there are that depict such accidents. Compared to the number of films devoted to
I have argued that there has been a sustained reluctance amongst British governments to engage in public dialogue on strategic nuclear deterrence policy. Some of the factors in the decision-making process for that policy have their roots in the arguments about reprisals for air raid attacks during the First World War. That experience and similar factors were significant for decision-making on strategy and public presentation of strategy during the bombing campaign of the Second Word War. Strategic factors such as
6 Bargaining for test ban treaties The earliest specific international arrangement, at least indirectly, to restrict the spread of nuclear weapons is the PTBT of 1963. The treaty bans the testing of all nuclear explosive devices anywhere except underground, and only then when the radioactive debris from the explosion is contained wholly within the borders of the state responsible. The negotiation of the treaty – originally designed to be a comprehensive ban on all nuclear testing – began essentially in 1955, when the Soviets unbundled such an agreement from a
Norway was a founding member of NATO and has hosted a number of key US intelligence facilities that contribute directly to the US global nuclear intelligence network. During the Cold War, Oslo also agreed to stationing several facilities on Norwegian territory that could support US nuclear operations in the event of war. Yet, Norwegian decision makers have consistently
Of all America’s alliances in Europe and Asia, the one with Australia is the least impacted by nuclear issues. The US has never deployed nuclear weapons on Australian soil and, aside from a very brief period in the late 1950s, there have been few pressures from Australia for such a deployment. The US nuclear umbrella features in Australia’s strategic guidance, but not in