View source for List of states with nuclear weapons

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{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2022}}

[[File:Nuclear weapons states.svg|thumb|upright=1.8|right|Map of [[nuclear weapon|nuclear-armed]] states of the world
{{legend|#5B92E5|[[Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons|NPT]]-designated nuclear weapon states ([[China and weapons of mass destruction|China]], [[France and weapons of mass destruction|France]], [[Russia and weapons of mass destruction|Russia]], [[Nuclear weapons and the United Kingdom|United Kingdom]], [[Nuclear weapons of the United States|United States]])}}
{{legend|#ff0000|Other states with nuclear weapons ([[India and weapons of mass destruction|India]], [[North Korea and weapons of mass destruction|North Korea]], [[Pakistan and weapons of mass destruction|Pakistan]])}}
{{legend|#d4aa00|Other states presumed to have nuclear weapons ([[Nuclear weapons and Israel|Israel]])}}
{{legend|#1034A6|[[NATO]] member [[nuclear sharing|nuclear weapons sharing]] states ([[Belgium]], [[Germany and weapons of mass destruction|Germany]], [[Italian nuclear weapons program|Italy]], [[Netherlands and weapons of mass destruction|the Netherlands]], [[Turkey]])}}
{{legend|#007C59|States formerly possessing nuclear weapons ([[Belarus]], [[Kazakhstan]], [[South Africa and weapons of mass destruction|South Africa]], [[Nuclear weapons and Ukraine|Ukraine]])}}]]

{{Nuclear weapons}}

Eight [[sovereign state]]s have publicly announced successful detonation of [[nuclear weapon]]s.<ref name="nuclearweapons1" /> [[United Nations Security Council#Permanent members|Five]] are considered to be '''nuclear-weapon states''' ('''NWS''') under the terms of the [[Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons]] (NPT). In order of acquisition of nuclear weapons these are the [[Nuclear weapons and the United States|United States]], [[Russia and weapons of mass destruction|Russia]] (the successor of the [[Dissolution of the Soviet Union|former]] [[Soviet atomic bomb project|Soviet Union]]), the [[Nuclear weapons and the United Kingdom|United Kingdom]], [[France and weapons of mass destruction|France]], and [[China and weapons of mass destruction|China]].

Since the NPT entered into force in 1970, three states that were not parties to the Treaty have conducted overt [[nuclear testing|nuclear tests]], namely [[India and weapons of mass destruction|India]], [[Pakistan and weapons of mass destruction|Pakistan]], and [[North Korea and weapons of mass destruction|North Korea]]. North Korea had been a party to the NPT but withdrew in 2003.

[[Nuclear weapons and Israel|Israel]] is also generally understood to have nuclear weapons,<ref>{{cite book|last=Hersh|first=Seymour|title=The Samson Option|publisher=Random House|chapter=Authors Note|date=27 October 1991|isbn=978-0394570068|author-link=Seymour Hersh}}''"This is a book about how Israel became a nuclear power in secret."'' (First sentence, Authors' Note/Introduction, [[The Samson Option: Israel's Nuclear Arsenal and American Foreign Policy]], Hersh)</ref><ref name="aca">{{cite web|url=https://www.armscontrol.org/factsheets/Nuclearweaponswhohaswhat|title=Nuclear Weapons: Who Has What at a Glance|publisher=Arms Control Association|date=July 2019|access-date=5 August 2020|quote=India, Israel, and Pakistan never signed the NPT and possess nuclear arsenals.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.businessinsider.com/israels-nuclear-arsenal-may-be-different-than-everyone-thinks-2014-11|quote=The country possesses some of the most powerful weaponry on earth, along with delivery systems that give it the ability to strike far beyond its borders.|date=10 November 2014|last=Rosen|first=Armin|website=Business Insider|title=Israel's Nuclear Arsenal Might Be Smaller And More Strategic Than Everyone Thinks|access-date=16 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161206114813/http://www.businessinsider.com/israels-nuclear-arsenal-may-be-different-than-everyone-thinks-2014-11|archive-date=6 December 2016|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nti.org/learn/countries/israel/|publisher=Nuclear Threat Initiative|quote=While experts generally agree that Israel possesses nuclear weapons, no such current open source consensus exists on the status of Israel's offensive chemical or biological weapons programs.|title=Israel|date=May 2015|access-date=16 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170116025240/http://www.nti.org/learn/countries/israel/|archive-date=16 January 2017|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|url=http://thebulletin.org/does-israel-really-have-200-nuclear-weapons-or-was-colin-powell-exaggerating9896|title=Does Israel really have 200 nuclear weapons, or was Colin Powell exaggerating?|last=Stover|first=Dawn|date=16 September 2016|journal=Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists|access-date=16 January 2017|quote=The boys in Tehran know Israel has 200, all targeted on Tehran, and we have thousands.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170118031932/http://thebulletin.org/does-israel-really-have-200-nuclear-weapons-or-was-colin-powell-exaggerating9896|archive-date=18 January 2017|url-status=live}} citing primary source private email from Colin Powell to Jeffrey Leeds [https://www.scribd.com/document/324033115/00002715-002?secret_password=f5tkfdHSGvz6LNei71K0] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170216050202/https://www.scribd.com/document/324033115/00002715-002?secret_password=f5tkfdHSGvz6LNei71K0 |date=16 February 2017 }}</ref> but does not acknowledge it, maintaining a [[policy of deliberate ambiguity]], and is not known definitively to have conducted a nuclear test.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/israel/Story/0,,1970616,00.html|title=Calls for Olmert to resign after nuclear gaffe Israel and the Middle East|newspaper=The Guardian|date=12 December 2006|access-date=15 May 2009|location=London|first=Luke|last=Harding}}</ref> Israel is estimated to possess somewhere between 75 and 400 nuclear warheads.<ref name="sipri.org">[http://www.sipri.org/research/armaments/nuclear-forces Nuclear Forces] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150107025723/http://www.sipri.org/research/armaments/nuclear-forces |date=7 January 2015 }}, [[Stockholm International Peace Research Institute]], sipri.org</ref><ref>There are a wide range of estimates as to the size of the Israeli nuclear arsenal. For a compiled list of estimates, see [[Avner Cohen]], The Worst-Kept Secret: Israel's bargain with the Bomb (Columbia University Press, 2010), Table 1, page xxvii and page 82.</ref> One possible motivation for ''nuclear ambiguity'' is [[Deterrence theory|deterrence]] with minimum political cost.<ref name="NTIIsrael" /><ref name="CohenIsrael">{{cite book| author=Avner Cohen| title=The Worst-Kept Secret: Israel's bargain with the Bomb| publisher=Columbia University Press| year=2010}}</ref>

States that formerly possessed nuclear weapons are [[South Africa and weapons of mass destruction|South Africa]] (developed nuclear weapons but then disassembled its arsenal before joining the NPT)<ref>Arms Control and Global Security, Paul R. Viotti – 2010, p 312</ref> and the former Soviet republics of [[Belarus]], [[Kazakhstan]], and [[Ukraine]], whose weapons were repatriated to Russia.

According to [[Stockholm International Peace Research Institute]] (SIPRI), the worldwide total inventory of nuclear weapons as of 2021 stood at 13,080. Around 30% of these are deployed with operational forces,<ref>{{cite news|title=SIPRI: Number of fatalities caused by armed conflict falls in 2020|url=https://www.jpost.com/international/sipri-number-of-fatalities-caused-by-armed-conflict-falls-in-2020-670945/amp|last=Ahronheim|first=Anna|date=14 June 2021|work=The Jerusalem Post|access-date=14 June 2021}}</ref> and more than 90% are owned by either Russia or the United States.<ref>{{cite news |first=Kelsey |last=Reichmann |title=Here's how many nuclear warheads exist, and which countries own them |url=https://www.defensenews.com/global/2019/06/16/heres-how-many-nuclear-warheads-exist-and-which-countries-own-them/ |work=[[Defense News]] |date=16 June 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Global Nuclear Arsenal Declines, But Future Cuts Uncertain Amid U.S.-Russia Tensions |url=https://www.rferl.org/a/nuclear-weapons-russia-start-inf-warheads/30003088.html |work=[[Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty]] (RFE/RL) |date=17 June 2019 |access-date=23 July 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190702194556/https://www.rferl.org/a/nuclear-weapons-russia-start-inf-warheads/30003088.html |archive-date=2 July 2019 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Statistics and force configuration==
{{Weapons of mass destruction}}
The following is a list of [[Sovereign state|states]] that have admitted the possession of [[nuclear weapon]]s or are presumed to possess them, the approximate number of [[warhead]]s under their control, and the year they tested their first weapon and their force configuration. This list is informally known in global politics as the "Nuclear Club".<ref>"Nuclear club", ''Oxford English Dictionary'': "nuclear club n. the nations that possess nuclear weapons." The term's first cited usage is from 1957.</ref><ref>Jane Onyanga-Omara, [https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2016/01/06/nine-nations-possess-nuclear-weapns/78350588/ "The Nuclear Club: Who are the 9 members?"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170904111359/https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2016/01/06/nine-nations-possess-nuclear-weapns/78350588/ |date=4 September 2017 }}, ''USA TODAY'', 6 January 2016</ref> With the exception of Russia and the United States (which have subjected their nuclear forces to independent verification under various treaties) these figures are estimates, in some cases quite unreliable estimates. In particular, under the [[Strategic Offensive Reductions Treaty]] thousands of Russian and U.S. nuclear warheads are inactive in stockpiles awaiting processing. The fissile material contained in the warheads can then be recycled for use in [[Nuclear reactor technology|nuclear reactors]].

From a high of 70,300 active weapons in 1986, {{as of|2019|lc=on||df=}} there are approximately 3,750 active nuclear warheads and 13,890 total nuclear warheads in the world.<ref name="nuclearweapons1">{{cite web|date=January 2020|title=World Nuclear Forces, SIPRI yearbook 2020|url=https://www.sipri.org/yearbook/2020/10|access-date=18 June 2020|website=Stockholm International Peace Research Institute|publisher=Stockholm International Peace Research Institute}}</ref> Many of the decommissioned weapons were simply stored or partially dismantled, not destroyed.<ref>Webster, Paul (July/August 2003). "[https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2009/sep/06/nuclear-weapons-world-us-north-korea-russia-iran Nuclear weapons: how many are there in 2009 and who has them?] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170108004154/https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2009/sep/06/nuclear-weapons-world-us-north-korea-russia-iran |date=2017-01-08 }}" ''The Guardian'', 6 September 2009.</ref>

It is also noteworthy that since the dawn of the [[Atomic Age]], the delivery methods of most states with nuclear weapons has evolved—with some achieving a [[nuclear triad]], while others have consolidated away from land and air deterrents to submarine-based forces.

{| class="wikitable sortable" border="1" style="font-size:95%"
|- style="background:#efefef; 
! rowspan=2 | Country
! colspan=2 | {{longitem|Warheads{{efn|All numbers are estimates from the [[Federation of American Scientists]]. The latest update was in October 2021. "Deployed" indicates the total of deployed strategic and non-strategic warheads. Because the number of non-strategic warheads is unknown for many countries, this number should be taken as a minimum. When a range of weapons is given (e.g., 0–10), it generally indicates that the estimate is being made on the amount of fissile material that has likely been produced, and the amount of fissile material needed per warhead depends on estimates of a country's proficiency at nuclear weapon design.}}}}
! rowspan=2 | {{longitem|Date of first test}}
! rowspan=2 | {{longitem|Site of first test}}
! rowspan=2 | {{longitem|[[Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty|CTBT]] status}}
! rowspan=2 | {{longitem|Delivery methods}}
! rowspan=2 | {{longitem|Tests}}
! rowspan=2 | {{longitem|Refs}}
|-
! Deployed
! Total
|- style="background:white;"
! colspan="9" align="center" |The five nuclear-weapon states under the [[Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons|NPT]]
|-
| {{flagicon image|Flag of the United States.svg}} [[Nuclear weapons of the United States|United States]]
|align="right"| 1,644 
|align="right"| 5,428|| 16 July 1945 (''[[Trinity (nuclear test)|Trinity]]'')
|[[Alamogordo, New Mexico]]|| Signatory<ref name="CTBT Status">{{cite web|title=Status of Signature and Ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty|url=http://www.ctbto.org/the-treaty/status-of-signature-and-ratification/|access-date=13 January 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110925211213/http://www.ctbto.org/the-treaty/status-of-signature-and-ratification|archive-date=25 September 2011|url-status=live}}</ref> || [[Nuclear triad]]<ref>[[#IISS2012|IISS 2012]], pp. 54–55</ref>  || align="right"| 1,054
| align="center" | <ref name=:123>{{cite web|url=https://www.armscontrol.org/factsheets/Nuclearweaponswhohaswhat|title=Nuclear Weapons: Who Has What at a Glance|publisher=Arms Control Association|date=July 2019|access-date=5 August 2020|quote=India, Israel, and Pakistan never signed the NPT and possess nuclear arsenals.}}, Last reviewed January 2022.  For other credible sources with slightly different numbers and earlier dates, see {{Cite web|date=April 2020|title=FAS World Nuclear Forces|url=https://fas.org/issues/nuclear-weapons/status-world-nuclear-forces/|access-date=18 June 2020|website=Federation of American Scientists}}, current date 2021-10-07, and {{cite web|date=January 2020|title=World Nuclear Forces, SIPRI yearbook 2020|url=https://www.sipri.org/yearbook/2020/10|access-date=18 June 2020|website=Stockholm International Peace Research Institute|publisher=Stockholm International Peace Research Institute}}, current date:  2020.</ref>
|-
| {{flagicon image|Flag of Russia.svg}} [[Russia and weapons of mass destruction|Russia]]
| align="right" | 1,588 
|align="right"| 5,977|| 29 August 1949 (''[[RDS-1]]'')
|[[Semey|Semipalatinsk]], [[Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic|Kazakh SSR]]|| Ratifier<ref name="CTBT Status" /> || Nuclear triad<ref>[[#IISS2012|IISS 2012]], p. 192</ref> || align="right" | 715
| align="center" | <ref name=:123/>
|-
| {{nowrap|{{flagicon image|Flag of the United Kingdom.svg}} [[Nuclear weapons and the United Kingdom|United Kingdom]]}}
|align="right"| 120
|align="right"| 225|| 3 October 1952 (''[[Operation Hurricane|Hurricane]]'')
|[[Montebello Islands|Monte Bello Islands]], [[Australia]]|| Ratifier<ref name="CTBT Status" /> || Sea-based<ref>[[#IISS2012|IISS 2012]], p. 169</ref>{{efn|See also [[UK Trident programme]]. From the 1960s until the 1990s, the United Kingdom's [[Royal Air Force]] maintained the independent capability to deliver nuclear weapons via its [[V bomber]] fleet.}} || align="right"| 45
| align="center" | <ref name="nuclearweapons1" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite web|date=April 2020|title=FAS World Nuclear Forces|url=https://fas.org/issues/nuclear-weapons/status-world-nuclear-forces/|access-date=18 June 2020|website=Federation of American Scientists}}</ref><ref name="aca"/>
|-
| {{flagicon image|Flag of France.svg}} [[France and weapons of mass destruction|France]]
|align="right"| 280
|align="right"| 290|| 13 February 1960 (''[[Gerboise Bleue (nuclear test)|Gerboise Bleue]]'')
|[[Reggane]], [[French Algeria]]|| Ratifier<ref name="CTBT Status" /> || Sea- and air-based<ref>[[#IISS2012|IISS 2012]], p. 111</ref>{{efn|See also [[Force de dissuasion]]. France formerly possessed a nuclear triad until 1996 and the retirement of its land-based arsenal.}} || align="right"| 210
| align="center" | <ref name="nuclearweapons1" /><ref name=":1" />
|-
| {{flagicon image|Flag of China.svg}} [[China and weapons of mass destruction|China]]
|align="right"| Unknown
|align="right"| 350|| 16 October 1964 (''[[Project 596|596]]'')
|[[Lop Nur]], [[Xinjiang]]|| Signatory<ref name="CTBT Status"/> || Nuclear triad<ref>''The Long Shadow: Nuclear Weapons and Security in 21st Century Asia'' by Muthiah Alagappa (NUS Press, 2009), page 169: "China has developed strategic nuclear forces made up of land-based missiles, submarine-launched missiles, and bombers. Within this triad, China has also developed weapons of different ranges, capabilities, and survivability."</ref><ref>[[#IISS2012|IISS 2012]], pp. 223–224</ref>|| align="right" | 45
| align="center" | <ref name="nuclearweapons1" /><ref name=":1" /><ref name="aca"/>
|- style="background:white;"
! colspan="9" align="center" |Non-[[Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons|NPT]] nuclear powers
|-
| {{flagicon image|Flag of India.svg}} [[India and weapons of mass destruction|India]]
|align="right"| Unknown 
|align="right"| 160|| 18 May 1974 (''[[Smiling Buddha]]'')
|[[Pokhran]]''',''' [[Rajasthan]]|| Non-signatory<ref name="CTBT Status"/>||Nuclear triad<ref>[[#IISS2012|IISS 2012]], p. 243</ref><ref name="Now, India has a nuclear triad">{{cite news |url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/Now-India-has-a-nuclear-triad/article16074127.ece |title=Now, India has a nuclear triad |newspaper=The Hindu |date=18 October 2016 |access-date=24 December 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221185205/http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/Now-India-has-a-nuclear-triad/article16074127.ece |archive-date=21 December 2016 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Peri|first1=Dinakar|title=India's Nuclear Triad Finally Coming of Age|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/06/indias-nuclear-triad-finally-coming-of-age/|access-date=10 March 2015|agency=The Diplomat|date=12 June 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150409012807/https://thediplomat.com/2014/06/indias-nuclear-triad-finally-coming-of-age/|archive-date=9 April 2015|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.livemint.com/Politics/lvVxsu1L5GPLvD7Z5j3baJ/Nuclear-triad-weapons-ready-for-deployment-DRDO.html|title=Nuclear triad weapons ready for deployment: DRDO|date=7 July 2014|access-date=10 March 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402104712/http://www.livemint.com/Politics/lvVxsu1L5GPLvD7Z5j3baJ/Nuclear-triad-weapons-ready-for-deployment-DRDO.html|archive-date=2 April 2015|url-status=live}}</ref>|| align="right"| 6
| align="center" | <ref name="nuclearweapons1" /><ref name=":1" /><ref name="aca"/>
|-
| {{flagicon image|Flag of Pakistan.svg}} [[Pakistan and weapons of mass destruction|Pakistan]]
|align="right"| 0
|align="right"| 165|| 28 May 1998 (''[[Chagai-I|Chagai-1]]'')
|[[Ras Koh Hills]], [[Balochistan, Pakistan|Balochistan]]|| Non-signatory<ref name="CTBT Status"/> || Land- and air-based<ref>[[#IISS2012|IISS 2012]], p. 272</ref><ref>''Pakistan's Nuclear Weapons''. Bhumitra Chakma (Routledge 2012), page 61: "Pakistan possesses two types of nuclear delivery vehicles: aircraft and missiles. Initially in the pre-tests era, Islamabad depended solely on aircraft as its chief means of delivering nuclear weapons. In the early 1990s, Pakistan acquired a few dozen ballistic missiles from China, and subsequently, it developed a number of missile systems which became its mainstay of nuclear delivery."</ref>{{efn|Sea-based tested but not yet operational.<ref>{{Cite news|date=10 January 2017|title=Pakistan fires 'first submarine-launched nuclear-capable missile'|language=en|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-pakistan-missiles-idUSKBN14T1EL|access-date=13 May 2020}}</ref>}}|| align="right"| 6
| align="center" | <ref name="nuclearweapons1" /><ref name="aca"/>
|-
| {{flagicon image|Flag of North Korea.svg}} [[North Korea and weapons of mass destruction|North Korea]]
|align="right"| 0
|align="right"| 20||[[2006 North Korean nuclear test|9 October 2006]]<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/13/AR2006101300576.html|date=13 October 2006|title=U.S.: Test Points to N. Korea Nuke Blast|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=3 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161227130708/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/13/AR2006101300576.html|archive-date=27 December 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>
|[[Kilju County|Kilju]], [[North Hamgyong Province|North Hamgyong]] || Non-signatory<ref name="CTBT Status"/> || Land- and sea-based<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Kristensen|first1=Hans M.|last2=Norris|first2=Robert S.|date=2 January 2018|title=North Korean nuclear capabilities, 2018|journal=Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists|language=en|volume=74|issue=1|pages=41–51|doi=10.1080/00963402.2017.1413062|bibcode=2018BuAtS..74a..41K|issn=0096-3402|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nknews.org/2019/07/new-north-korean-submarine-capable-of-carrying-three-slbms-south-korean-mnd/|title=New North Korean submarine capable of carrying three SLBMs: South Korean MND {{!}} NK News – North Korea News|date=31 July 2019|language=en-US|access-date=5 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190804192434/https://www.nknews.org/2019/07/new-north-korean-submarine-capable-of-carrying-three-slbms-south-korean-mnd/|archive-date=4 August 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>|| align="right"| 6
| align="center" | <ref name="nuclearweapons1" /><ref name=":1" /><ref name="aca"/>
|- style="background:white;"
! colspan="9" align="center" |Undeclared nuclear powers
|-
| {{flagicon image|Flag of Israel.svg}} [[Nuclear weapons and Israel|Israel]]
|align="right"| 0
|align="right"| 90||[[Nuclear weapons and Israel#Nuclear testing|1960–1979]]<ref>Farr, Warner D (September 1999), The Third Temple's holy of holies: Israel's nuclear weapons, The Counterproliferation Papers, Future Warfare Series 2, USAF Counterproliferation Center, Air War College, Air University, Maxwell Air Force Base, retrieved 2 July 2006.</ref>{{efn|Data include the suspected [[Vela incident]] of 22 September 1979.<ref>*{{cite book|last=Hersh|first=Seymour|title=The Samson option: Israel's Nuclear Arsenal and American Foreign Policy|isbn=978-0-394-57006-8|publisher=Random House|year=1991}}, page 271</ref>}} ||''Unknown''|| Signatory<ref name="CTBT Status"/> || Suspected nuclear triad<ref>''An Atlas of Middle Eastern Affairs'' By Ewan W. Anderson, Liam D. Anderson, (Routledge 2013), page 233: "In terms of delivery systems, there is strong evidence that Israel now possesses all three elements of the nuclear triad."</ref><ref>[[#IISS2012|IISS 2012]], p. 328</ref> || align="right"| N/A
| align="center" | <ref name="nuclearweapons1" /><ref name="aca"/>
|}

==Recognized nuclear-weapon states==
{{See also|History of nuclear weapons}}
These five states are known to have detonated a nuclear explosive before 1 January 1967 and are thus nuclear weapons states under the [[Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons]]. They also happen to be the [[UN Security Council]]'s  (UNSC) [[Permanent members of the United Nations Security Council|permanent members]] with [[Veto power in the UN Security Council|veto power]] on UNSC resolutions.

===United States===
{{Main|Nuclear weapons of the United States|United States and weapons of mass destruction}}{{See also|Manhattan Project}}[[File:Trinity Test Fireball 16ms.jpg|right|thumb|An early stage in the "[[Trinity test|Trinity]]" fireball, the first [[nuclear explosion]], 1945]]
The United States developed the first nuclear weapons during [[World War&nbsp;II]] in cooperation with the United Kingdom and Canada as part of the [[Manhattan Project]], out of the fear that [[Nazi Germany]] would develop them first. It tested the first nuclear weapon on 16 July 1945 ("[[Trinity site|Trinity]]") at 5:30 am, and remains the only country to have used nuclear weapons in war, [[Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki|devastating]] the Japanese cities of [[Hiroshima]] and [[Nagasaki]]. The project expenditure through 1 October 1945 was reportedly $1.845-$2&nbsp;billion, in nominal terms,<ref>{{harvnb|Nichols|1987|pp=34–35}}.</ref><ref name="ej19450807">{{cite news|date=7 August 1945|title=Atomic Bomb Seen as Cheap at Price|page=1|newspaper=Edmonton Journal|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=yuVkAAAAIBAJ&pg=5621%2C2841878|access-date=1 January 2012}}</ref> roughly 0.8 percent of the US GDP in 1945 and equivalent to about $29 billion in 2020 money.<ref>{{Cite web|title=The Inflation Calculator|url=https://westegg.com/inflation/infl.cgi?money=2&first=1945&final=2020|access-date=18 May 2021|website=westegg.com}}</ref>

It was the first nation to develop the [[hydrogen bomb]], testing an experimental prototype in 1952 ("[[Ivy Mike]]") and a deployable weapon in 1954 ("[[Castle Bravo]]"). Throughout the [[Cold War]] it continued to modernize and enlarge its nuclear arsenal, but from 1992 on has been involved primarily in a program of [[Stockpile stewardship]].<ref>{{cite book|first=Chuck|last=Hansen|title=U.S. nuclear weapons: The secret history|location=Arlington, TX |publisher=Aerofax|year=1988|isbn=978-0-517-56740-1}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|first=Chuck|last=Hansen|title=The Swords of Armageddon: U.S. nuclear weapons development since 1945|location=Sunnyvale, CA|publisher=Chukelea Publications|year=1995|url=http://www.uscoldwar.com/|access-date=20 February 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161230020259/http://www.uscoldwar.com/|archive-date=30 December 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>Stephen I. Schwartz, ed., ''Atomic Audit: The Costs and Consequences of U.S. Nuclear Weapons Since 1940'' (Washington, D.C.: Brookings Institution Press, 1998).</ref><ref name="Gross">{{cite magazine|last1=Gross|first1=Daniel A.|title=An Aging Army|magazine=Distillations|date=2016|volume=2|issue=1|pages=26–36|url=https://www.sciencehistory.org/distillations/magazine/an-aging-army|access-date=22 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180320230842/https://www.sciencehistory.org/distillations/magazine/an-aging-army|archive-date=20 March 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> The U.S. nuclear arsenal contained 31,175 warheads at its Cold War height (in 1966).<ref>{{cite web |title=Fact Sheet: Increasing Transparency in the U.S. Nuclear Weapons Stockpile |url=http://www.defense.gov/npr/docs/10-05-03_Fact_Sheet_US_Nuclear_Transparency__FINAL_w_Date.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150811174503/http://www.defense.gov/npr/docs/10-05-03_Fact_Sheet_US_Nuclear_Transparency__FINAL_w_Date.pdf |archive-date=11 August 2015 |publisher=U.S. Department of Defense |access-date=31 August 2013 |date=3 May 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref> During the Cold War, the United States built approximately 70,000 nuclear warheads, more than all other nuclear-weapon states combined.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nrdc.org/policy-library|title=Policy Library|access-date=23 August 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160822130722/https://www.nrdc.org/policy-library|archive-date=22 August 2016|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="NorrisKristensenGlobal">Robert S. Norris and Hans M. Kristensen, "[https://web.archive.org/web/20081119090924/http://thebulletin.metapress.com/content/c4120650912x74k7/fulltext.pdf Global nuclear stockpiles, 1945–2006]," Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists 62, no. 4 (July/August 2006), 64–66...</ref>

===Russia (successor to the Soviet Union)===
{{Main|Russia and weapons of mass destruction|Strategic Missile Troops}}
{{See also|Soviet atomic bomb project}}
[[File:US and USSR nuclear stockpiles.svg|thumb|U.S. and USSR/Russian nuclear weapons stockpiles, 1945–2014]]
The Soviet Union tested its first nuclear weapon ("[[RDS-1]]") in 1949. This crash project was developed partially with information obtained via [[espionage]] during and after World War II. The Soviet Union was the second nation to have developed and tested a nuclear weapon. The direct motivation for Soviet weapons development was to achieve a balance of power during the Cold War. It tested its first megaton-range hydrogen bomb ("[[RDS-37]]") in 1955. The Soviet Union also tested the most powerful explosive ever detonated by humans, ("[[Tsar Bomba]]"), with a theoretical yield of 100 megatons, intentionally reduced to 50 when detonated. After its dissolution in 1991, the Soviet weapons entered officially into the possession of the Russian Federation.<ref>{{cite book|first=David|last=Holloway|title=Stalin and the bomb: The Soviet Union and atomic energy, 1939–1956|location=New Haven, CT |publisher=Yale University Press|year=1994|isbn=978-0-300-06056-0}}</ref> The Soviet nuclear arsenal contained some 45,000 warheads at its peak (in 1986); the Soviet Union built about 55,000 nuclear warheads since 1949.<ref name="NorrisKristensenGlobal" />

===United Kingdom===
{{Main|Nuclear weapons and the United Kingdom|United Kingdom and weapons of mass destruction}}{{See also|Tube Alloys|British contribution to the Manhattan Project|High Explosive Research|British hydrogen bomb programme}}[[File:Trident II missile image.jpg|thumb|right|A [[Trident missile]] launched from a [[Royal Navy]] {{sclass|Vanguard|submarine|0}} [[ballistic missile submarine]]]]
The United Kingdom tested its first nuclear weapon ("[[Operation Hurricane|Hurricane]]") in 1952. The UK had provided considerable impetus and initial research for the early conception of the atomic bomb, aided by Austrian, German and Polish physicists working at British universities who had either fled or decided not to return to Nazi Germany or Nazi controlled territories. The UK collaborated closely with the United States and Canada during the Manhattan Project, but had to develop its own method for manufacturing and detonating a bomb as U.S. secrecy grew after 1945. The United Kingdom was the third country in the world, after the United States and the Soviet Union, to develop and test a nuclear weapon. Its programme was motivated to have an independent deterrent against the Soviet Union, while also maintaining its status as a [[great power]]. It tested its first hydrogen bomb in 1957 ([[Operation Grapple]]), making it the third country to do so after the United States and Soviet Union.<ref>{{cite book|first=Margaret|last=Gowing|title=Independence and deterrence: Britain and atomic energy, 1945–1952 |location=London |publisher=Macmillan |year=1974|isbn=978-0-333-15781-7}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|first=Lorna|last=Arnold|title=Britain and the H-bomb|location=Basingstoke |publisher=Palgrave|year=2001|isbn=978-0-312-23518-5}}</ref>

The [[British Armed Forces]] maintained a fleet of [[V bomber]] [[strategic bombers]] and [[ballistic missile submarine|ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs)]] equipped with nuclear weapons during the Cold War. The [[Royal Navy]] currently maintains a fleet of four {{sclass|Vanguard|submarine|0}} ballistic missile submarines equipped with [[Trident missile|Trident II missiles]]. In 2016, the [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|UK House of Commons]] voted to renew the British nuclear weapons system with the {{sclass|Dreadnought|submarine|1}}, without setting a date for the commencement of service of a replacement to the current system.

===France===
{{Main|France and weapons of mass destruction|Force de dissuasion}}
[[File:USS Enterprise FS Charles de Gaulle.jpg|thumb|French nuclear-powered [[aircraft carrier]] ''[[Charles de Gaulle (R 91)|Charles de Gaulle]]'' (right) and the American nuclear-powered carrier [[USS Enterprise (CVN-65)|USS ''Enterprise'']] (left), each of which carries nuclear-capable [[warplanes]]]]
France tested its first nuclear weapon in 1960 ("[[Gerboise Bleue]]"), based mostly on its own research. It was motivated by the [[Suez Crisis]] diplomatic tension in relation to both the Soviet Union and its allies, the United States and United Kingdom. It was also relevant to retain great power status, alongside the United Kingdom, during the post-colonial Cold War (see: [[Force de frappe]]). France tested its first hydrogen bomb in 1968 ("[[Canopus (nuclear test)|Opération Canopus]]"). After the Cold War, France has disarmed 175 warheads with the reduction and modernization of its arsenal that has now evolved to a dual system based on [[submarine-launched ballistic missiles]] (SLBMs) and medium-range air-to-surface missiles ([[Rafale]] fighter-bombers). However new nuclear weapons are in development and reformed nuclear squadrons were trained during [[French forces in Afghanistan|Enduring Freedom operations in Afghanistan]]. {{Citation needed|date=November 2013}}

France acceded to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in 1992.<ref name="NPTsignatories">[http://disarmament.un.org/treaties/t/npt?OpenView Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141217025852/http://disarmament.un.org/treaties/t/npt?OpenView |date=17 December 2014 }}, United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs.</ref> In January 2006, President [[Jacques Chirac]] stated a terrorist act or the use of [[weapons of mass destruction]] against France would result in a nuclear counterattack.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4627862.stm France 'would use nuclear arms'] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061219022622/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4627862.stm |date=19 December 2006 }} (BBC, January 2006)</ref> In February 2015, President [[François Hollande]] stressed the need for a nuclear deterrent in "a dangerous world". He also detailed the French deterrent as "fewer than 300" nuclear warheads, three sets of 16 submarine-launched ballistic missiles and 54 medium-range air-to-surface missiles and urged other states to show similar transparency.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Nuclear_deterrent_important_in_dangerous_world_says_Hollande_999.html|title=Nuclear deterrent important in 'dangerous world', says Hollande|work=spacedaily.com|access-date=20 February 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304194041/http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Nuclear_deterrent_important_in_dangerous_world_says_Hollande_999.html|archive-date=4 March 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>

===China===
{{Main|China and weapons of mass destruction|People's Liberation Army Rocket Force}}
[[File:1965-01 1964年 首次原子弹爆炸2.jpg|thumb|Mushroom cloud from China's first nuclear test, [[Project 596]]]]
China tested its first nuclear weapon device ("[[596 (nuclear test)|596]]") in 1964 at the [[Lop Nur]] test site. The weapon was developed as a deterrent against both the United States and the Soviet Union. Two years later, China had a fission bomb capable of being put onto a [[nuclear missile]]. It tested its first hydrogen bomb ("[[Chinese nuclear test No. 6|Test No. 6]]") in 1967,  32 months after testing its first nuclear weapon (the shortest fission-to-fusion development known in history).<ref>John Wilson Lewis and Xue Litai, ''China Builds the Bomb'' (Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press, 1988). {{ISBN|0-8047-1452-5}}</ref> China is the only NPT nuclear-weapon state to give an unqualified negative [[security assurance]] with its "[[no first use]]" policy.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://nuclearthreatinitiative.org/db/china/nfuorg.htm |title=No-First-Use (NFU) |work=Nuclear Threat Initiative |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100125101108/http://nuclearthreatinitiative.org/db/china/nfuorg.htm |archive-date=25 January 2010}}</ref><ref name="S/1995/265">{{cite journal |url=http://www.undemocracy.com/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070824160751/http://www.undemocracy.com/ |archive-date=24 August 2007 |title=Statement on security assurances issued on 5 April 1995 by the People's Republic of China |publisher=United Nations |date=6 April 1995 |id=S/1995/265 |access-date=20 September 2012}}</ref> China acceded to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in 1992.<ref name="NPTsignatories" /> As of 2016, China fielded SLBMs onboard its [[JL-2]] submarines.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kristensen|first1=Hans M.|last2=Korda|first2=Matt|date=4 July 2019|title=Chinese nuclear forces, 2019|journal=Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists|language=en|volume=75|issue=4|pages=171–178|doi=10.1080/00963402.2019.1628511|bibcode=2019BuAtS..75d.171K|issn=0096-3402 |doi-access=free}}</ref> As of May 2021, China has an estimated total inventory of 350 warheads.<ref>{{Cite news|title=SIPRI: Number of fatalities caused by armed conflict falls in 2020|url=https://www.jpost.com/international/sipri-number-of-fatalities-caused-by-armed-conflict-falls-in-2020-670945/amp|publisher=The Jerusalem Post|access-date=14 June 2021}}</ref>

==States declaring possession of nuclear weapons==
[[File:World nuclear weapons.png|thumb|right|Large stockpile with global range (dark blue), smaller stockpile with global range (medium blue), small stockpile with regional range (light blue)]]

===India===
{{Main|India and weapons of mass destruction}}

India is not a party to the [[Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty]]. India adopted the "[[no first use]]" policy in 1998. India tested what is called a "[[Peaceful nuclear explosions|peaceful nuclear explosive]]" in 1974 (which became known as "[[Smiling Buddha]]"). The test was the first test developed after the creation of the NPT, and created new questions about how civilian nuclear technology could be diverted secretly to weapons purposes ([[Dual-use technology#Nuclear|dual-use technology]]). India's secret development caused great concern and anger particularly from nations that had supplied [[CIRUS|its nuclear reactors]] for peaceful and power generating needs, such as Canada.<ref>{{cite web |title = 18 MAY 1974 – SMILING BUDDAH |url = https://www.ctbto.org/specials/testing-times/18-may-1974-smiling-buddah |website=CTBTO |access-date=24 January 2018 }}</ref>

Indian officials rejected the NPT in the 1960s on the grounds that it created a world of nuclear "haves" and "have-nots", arguing that it unnecessarily restricted "peaceful activity" (including "peaceful nuclear explosives"), and that India would not accede to international control of their nuclear facilities unless all other countries engaged in [[unilateral disarmament]] of their own nuclear weapons. The Indian position has also asserted that the NPT is in many ways a neo-colonial regime designed to deny security to post-colonial powers.<ref>George Perkovich, ''India's Nuclear Bomb: The Impact on Global Proliferation'' (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1999), 120–121, and 7.</ref> Even after its 1974 test, India maintained that its nuclear capability was primarily "peaceful", but between 1988 and 1990 it apparently weaponized two dozen nuclear weapons for delivery by air.<ref>George Perkovich, ''India's Nuclear Bomb: The Impact on Global Proliferation'' (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1999), 293–297.</ref> In 1998 India tested weaponized nuclear warheads ("[[Operation Shakti]]"), including a [[Thermonuclear weapon|thermonuclear device]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://nuclearweaponarchive.org/India/IndiaShakti.html|title=India's Nuclear Weapons Program: Operation Shakti|year=1998|access-date=10 October 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061003235010/http://nuclearweaponarchive.org/India/IndiaShakti.html|archive-date=3 October 2006|url-status=live}}</ref>

In July 2005, U.S. President [[George W. Bush]] and Indian Prime Minister [[Manmohan Singh]] announced plans to conclude an [[Indo-US civilian nuclear agreement]].<ref>{{cite web |url = https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2005/07/20050718-6.html |title = Joint Statement Between President George W. Bush and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh |access-date=15 May 2009 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20091227004630/http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2005/07/20050718-6.html |archive-date=27 December 2009 |via = [[NARA|National Archives]] |work = [[whitehouse.gov]] |url-status=live }}</ref> This came to fruition through a series of steps that included India's announced plan to separate its civil and military nuclear programs in March 2006,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.indianembassy.org/newsite/press_release/2006/Mar/sepplan.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060903091254/http://www.indianembassy.org/newsite/press_release/2006/Mar/sepplan.pdf|title=Implementation of the India-United States Joint Statement of July 18, 2005: India's Separation Plan|url-status=dead|archive-date=3 September 2006|date=3 September 2006}}</ref> the passage of the [[India–United States Civil Nuclear Agreement]] by the [[U.S. Congress]] in December 2006, the conclusion of a U.S.–India nuclear cooperation agreement in July 2007,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://2001-2009.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2007/89552.htm|title=U.S.- India Civil Nuclear Cooperation Initiative – Bilateral Agreement on Peaceful Nuclear Cooperation|date=27 July 2007|access-date=22 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171117140302/https://2001-2009.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2007/89552.htm|archive-date=17 November 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> approval by the [[IAEA]] of an India-specific safeguards agreement,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.iaea.org/NewsCenter/News/2008/board010808.html|title=IAEA Board Approves India-Safeguards Agreement |website=Iaea.org|date=31 July 2008|access-date=15 May 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090505234507/http://iaea.org/NewsCenter/News/2008/board010808.html|archive-date=5 May 2009|url-status=live}}</ref> agreement by the [[Nuclear Suppliers Group]] to a waiver of export restrictions for India,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.carnegieendowment.org/files/Final_NSG_Statement_India_20080906.pdf|title=Statement on Civil Nuclear Cooperation with India|access-date=18 October 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081019090645/https://www.carnegieendowment.org/files/Final_NSG_Statement_India_20080906.pdf|archive-date=19 October 2008|url-status=live}}</ref> approval by the U.S. Congress<ref>{{cite web|url=https://2001-2009.state.gov/secretary/rm/2008/10/110554.htm|title=Congressional Approval of the U.S.-India Agreement for Cooperation Concerning Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy (123 Agreement)|date=2 October 2008|access-date=22 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171117032516/https://2001-2009.state.gov/secretary/rm/2008/10/110554.htm|archive-date=17 November 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> and culminating in the signature of U.S.–India agreement for civil nuclear cooperation<ref>{{cite web|url=https://2001-2009.state.gov/secretary/rm/2008/10/110916.htm|title=Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Indian Minister of External Affairs Pranab Mukherjee At the Signing of the U.S.-India Civilian Nuclear Cooperation Agreement|date=10 October 2008|access-date=22 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171117032418/https://2001-2009.state.gov/secretary/rm/2008/10/110916.htm|archive-date=17 November 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> in October 2008. The [[U.S. State Department]] said it made it "very clear that we will not recognize India as a nuclear-weapon state".<ref>[http://www.armscontrol.org/interviews/20060518_Joseph Interview With Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Robert Joseph] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081023081854/http://www.armscontrol.org/interviews/20060518_Joseph |date=23 October 2008 }}, ''Arms Control Today'', May 2006.</ref> The United States is bound by the [[Hyde Act]] with India and may cease all cooperation with India if India detonates a nuclear explosive device. The US had further said it is not its intention to assist India in the design, construction or operation of sensitive nuclear technologies through the transfer of dual-use items.<ref>[http://www.indianexpress.com/story/356926.html Was India misled by America on nuclear deal?] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080910011419/http://www.indianexpress.com/story/356926.html |date=10 September 2008 }}, ''Indian Express''.</ref> In establishing an exemption for India, the Nuclear Suppliers Group reserved the right to consult on any future issues which might trouble it.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.armscontrol.org/system/files/20080906_Final_NSG_Statement.pdf|title=ACA: Final NSG Statement|access-date=18 October 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101120200023/http://www.armscontrol.org/system/files/20080906_Final_NSG_Statement.pdf|archive-date=20 November 2010|url-status=live}}</ref> As of May 2021, India was estimated to have a stockpile of around 160 warheads.<ref>{{Cite news|title=SIPRI: Number of fatalities caused by armed conflict falls in 2020|url=https://www.jpost.com/international/sipri-number-of-fatalities-caused-by-armed-conflict-falls-in-2020-670945/amp|publisher=The Jerusalem Post|access-date=14 June 2021}}</ref>

===Pakistan===
{{Main|Pakistan and weapons of mass destruction}}
Pakistan is also not a party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Pakistan covertly developed nuclear weapons over decades, beginning in the late 1970s. Pakistan first delved into nuclear power after the establishment of its first nuclear power plant near [[Karachi]] with equipment and materials supplied mainly by western nations in the early 1970s. Pakistani President [[Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto]] promised in 1971 that if India could build nuclear weapons then Pakistan would too, according to him: "We will develop Nuclear stockpiles, even if we have to eat grass."<ref>{{cite web | last =Sublettle | first =Carey | title =Historical Background: Zulfikar Ali Bhutto | work =Nuclear weapons archives | publisher =Federation of American Scientists (FAS) | date =15 October 1965 | url =http://www.nuclearweaponarchive.org/Pakistan/PakOrigin.html | access-date =19 August 2018 | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20131216222126/http://www.nuclearweaponarchive.org/Pakistan/PakOrigin.html | archive-date =16 December 2013 | url-status=live }}</ref>

It is believed that Pakistan has possessed nuclear weapons since the mid-1980s.<ref>[http://www.nti.org/country-profiles/pakistan/ NTI Pakistan Profile] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120416084022/http://www.nti.org/country-profiles/pakistan/ |date=16 April 2012 }}, retrieved 22 April 2012.</ref> The United States continued to certify that Pakistan did not possess such weapons until 1990, when sanctions were imposed under the [[Larry Pressler#Pakistan and the Pressler Amendment|Pressler Amendment]], requiring a cutoff of U.S. economic and military assistance to Pakistan.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.iie.com/research/topics/sanctions/pakistan.cfm |title=Case Studies in Sanctions and Terrorism: Pakistan |publisher=Iie.com |access-date=15 May 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090512121259/http://www.iie.com/research/topics/sanctions/pakistan.cfm |archive-date=12 May 2009 |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1998, Pakistan conducted its first [[Chagai-I|six nuclear tests]] at the [[Ras Koh Hills]] in response to the five tests conducted by India a few weeks before.

In 2004, the Pakistani metallurgist [[Abdul Qadeer Khan]], a key figure in Pakistan's nuclear weapons program, confessed to heading an international [[black market]] ring involved in selling nuclear weapons technology. In particular, Khan had been selling [[gas centrifuge]] technology to North Korea, Iran, and Libya. Khan denied complicity by the Pakistani government or Army, but this has been called into question by journalists and IAEA officials, and was later contradicted by statements from Khan himself.<ref>See [[A.Q. Khan#Investigation, dismissal, confession, pardon and aftermath|A.Q. Khan: Investigation, dismissal, confession, pardon and aftermath]], for citations and details.</ref>

As of early 2013, Pakistan was estimated to have had a stockpile of around 140 warheads,<ref name="NucDec2017">{{cite web|url=https://fas.org/issues/nuclear-weapons/status-world-nuclear-forces/|title=Status of World Nuclear Forces|website=Federation of American Scientists|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180124145358/https://fas.org/issues/nuclear-weapons/status-world-nuclear-forces/|archive-date=24 January 2018|access-date=24 January 2018}}</ref> and in November 2014 it was projected that by 2020 Pakistan would have enough fissile material for 200 warheads.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/Pakistan-to-have-200-nuclear-weapons-by-2020-US-think-tank/articleshow/45250170.cms | title=Pakistan to Have 200 Nuke Weapons by 2020: US Think Tank | newspaper=The Times of india | date=November 2014 | access-date=28 November 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141127141607/http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/Pakistan-to-have-200-nuclear-weapons-by-2020-US-think-tank/articleshow/45250170.cms | archive-date=27 November 2014 | url-status=live }}</ref>

===North Korea===
{{Main|North Korea and weapons of mass destruction}}

North Korea was a party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, but announced a withdrawal on 10 January 2003, after the United States accused it of having a secret [[uranium enrichment]] program and cut off energy assistance under the 1994 [[Agreed Framework]]. In February 2005, North Korea claimed to possess functional nuclear weapons, though their lack of a test at the time led many experts to doubt the claim. In October 2006, North Korea stated that, in response to growing intimidation by the United States, it would conduct a nuclear test to confirm its nuclear status. North Korea reported a successful nuclear test on 9 October 2006 (see [[2006 North Korean nuclear test]]). Most U.S. intelligence officials believed that the test was probably only partially successful with a [[nuclear weapon yield|yield]] of less than a kiloton.<ref>{{cite news|first1=Rick|last1=Gladstone|first2=Rogene|last2=Jacquette|accessdate=18 April 2021|title=How the North Korean Nuclear Threat Has Grown|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/17/world/asia/north-korea-nuclear-threat.html|newspaper=The New York Times|date=18 February 2017|issn=0362-4331|via=NYTimes.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|author=Reuters Staff|accessdate=18 April 2021|title=TIMELINE:North Korea: climbdowns and tests|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-korea-north-nuclear-timeline-sb-idUSTRE54O0K020090525|newspaper=Reuters|date=25 May 2009|via=www.reuters.com}}</ref> North Korea conducted a second, higher-yield test on 25 May 2009 (see [[2009 North Korean nuclear test]]) and a third test with still-higher yield on 12 February 2013 (see [[2013 North Korean nuclear test]]).

North Korea claimed to have conducted its [[January 2016 North Korean nuclear test|first hydrogen-bomb test]] on 5 January 2016, though measurements of seismic disturbances indicate that the detonation was not consistent with a hydrogen bomb.<ref>{{cite news |title=North Korea Test Shows Technical Advance |newspaper=The Wall Street Journal |date=7 January 2016 |volume=CCLXVII |issue=5 |page=A6 }}</ref> On 3 September 2017, [[2017 North Korean nuclear test|North Korea detonated a device]], which caused a magnitude 6.1 tremor, consistent with a low-powered [[Thermonuclear weapon|thermonuclear]] detonation; NORSAR estimates the yield at 250 kilotons<ref>{{cite web|url = https://www.norsar.no/press/latest-press-release/archive/the-nuclear-explosion-in-north-korea-on-3-september-2017-a-revised-magnitude-assessment-article1548-984.html |title=The nuclear explosion in North Korea on 3 September 2017: A revised magnitude assessment |website=NORSAR.no |access-date=15 September 2017 |archive-url = https://archive.today/20170913180851/https://www.norsar.no/press/latest-press-release/archive/the-nuclear-explosion-in-north-korea-on-3-september-2017-a-revised-magnitude-assessment-article1548-984.html |archive-date=13 September 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref> of TNT. In 2018, North Korea announced a halt in nuclear weapons tests and made a conditional commitment to denuclearisation of the [[Korean Peninsula]];<ref>{{cite news |title=North Korea has Begun Dismantlement of the Punggye-ri Nuclear Test Site' |url= https://www.38north.org/2018/05/punggye051418/ |work=38north.org |access-date=3 August 2018 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180803213550/https://www.38north.org/2018/05/punggye051418/ |archive-date=3 August 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title='Destruction at North Korea's Nuclear Test Site: A Review in Photos' |url = https://www.38north.org/2018/05/punggye052518/ |website=38north.org |access-date=3 August 2018 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180814103301/https://www.38north.org/2018/05/punggye052518/ |archive-date=14 August 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref> however, in December 2019, it indicated it no longer considered itself bound by the moratorium.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Sang-Hun|first=Choe|date=31 December 2019|title=North Korea Is No Longer Bound by Nuclear Test Moratorium, Kim Says|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/31/world/asia/north-korea-kim-speech.html|access-date=18 June 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

==States indicated to possess nuclear weapons==

===Israel===
{{Main|Nuclear weapons and Israel|Israel and weapons of mass destruction}}

Israel is widely believed to have been the sixth country in the world to develop nuclear weapons, but it has not acknowledged its nuclear forces. It had "rudimentary, but deliverable," nuclear weapons available as early as 1966.{{Sfn | Cohen | 1998a | p = 349}}<ref>{{cite web | first = Mohamed | last = ElBaradei | url = http://www.iaea.org/NewsCenter/Transcripts/2004/alahram27072004.html | title = Transcript of the Director General's Interview with Al-Ahram News | author-link = Mohamed ElBaradei | publisher = [[International Atomic Energy Agency]] | date = 27 July 2004 | access-date = 3 June 2007 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120418221656/http://www.iaea.org/newscenter/transcripts/2004/alahram27072004.html | archive-date = 18 April 2012 | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="NTI">{{cite web | access-date = 23 June 2009 | work = Israel | title = Nuclear Overview | format = profile | publisher = NTI | url = http://www.nti.org/e_research/profiles/Israel/Nuclear/ | url-status=dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090102210432/http://www.nti.org/e_research/profiles/Israel/Nuclear/ | archive-date = 2 January 2009 }}</ref><ref name="auto">''My Promised Land'', by [[Ari Shavit]], (London 2014), page 188</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Israel's Quest for Yellowcake: The Secret Argentina-Israel Connection, 1963–1966|author=Nuclear Proliferation International History Project|url=http://www.wilsoncenter.org/publication/israels-quest-for-yellowcake-the-secret-argentina-israel-connection-1963-1966|publisher=[[Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars]]|date=28 June 2013|access-date=22 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170814114619/https://www.wilsoncenter.org/publication/israels-quest-for-yellowcake-the-secret-argentina-israel-connection-1963-1966|archive-date=14 August 2017|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/world/israel/nuke.htm|title=Nuclear Weapons|author=John Pike|website=globalsecurity.org|access-date=22 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171117034959/https://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/world/israel/nuke.htm |archive-date=17 November 2017|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://fas.org/nuke/guide/israel/nuke/index.html|title=Nuclear Weapons |website=fas.org|access-date=7 November 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101207122117/http://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/israel/nuke/index.html|archive-date=7 December 2010|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="NTIIsrael">[http://www.nti.org/e_research/profiles/Israel/Nuclear/index.html NTI Israel Profile] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110728090642/http://www.nti.org/e_research/profiles/Israel/Nuclear/index.html |date=28 July 2011 }} Retrieved 12 July 2007.</ref> Israel is not a party to the NPT. Israel engages in [[Policy of deliberate ambiguity|strategic ambiguity]], saying it would not be the first country to "introduce" nuclear weapons into the region, but refusing to otherwise confirm or deny a nuclear weapons program or arsenal. This policy of "nuclear opacity" has been interpreted as an attempt to get the benefits of [[deterrence theory|deterrence]] with a minimal political cost.<ref name="NTIIsrael" /><ref name="CohenIsrael"/>

According to the [[Natural Resources Defense Council]] and the [[Federation of American Scientists]], Israel likely possesses around 75–200 nuclear weapons.<ref name="israelcohen">There are a wide range of estimates as to the size of the Israeli nuclear arsenal. For a compiled list of estimates, see [[Avner Cohen]], ''The Worst-Kept Secret: Israel's bargain with the Bomb'' (Columbia University Press, 2010), Table 1, page xxvii and page 82.</ref><ref>[https://fas.org/nuke/guide/israel/nuke/index.html Israel's Nuclear Weapons] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101207122117/http://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/israel/nuke/index.html |date=7 December 2010 }}, [[Federation of American Scientists]] (17 August 2000)</ref> The [[Stockholm International Peace Research Institute]] estimates that Israel has approximately 80 intact nuclear weapons, of which 50 are for delivery by [[Jericho II]] medium-range ballistic missiles and 30 are [[gravity bombs]] for delivery by aircraft. [[SIPRI]] also reports that there was renewed speculation in 2012 that Israel may also have developed nuclear-capable [[Popeye Turbo|submarine-launched cruise missiles]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sipri.org/research/armaments/nuclear-forces/israel|title=Israel|access-date=19 January 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141217155101/http://www.sipri.org/research/armaments/nuclear-forces/israel|archive-date=17 December 2014|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Launch authority==

The decision to use nuclear weapons is always restricted to a single person or small group of people. The [[United States]] and [[France]] require their respective presidents to approve the use of nuclear weapons. In the US, the [[Nuclear football|Presidential Emergency Satchel]] is always handled by a nearby aide unless the President is near a command center. The decision rests with the monarch and the prime minister in the [[United Kingdom]]. Information from [[China]] is unclear, but "the launch of nuclear weapons is commonly believed to rest with the [[Politburo Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party|Standing Committee of the Politburo of the Central Committee]]." Russia grants such power to the [[President of Russia|President]] but may also require approval from the [[Minister of Defence (Russia)|Minister of Defence]] and the [[Chief of the General Staff (Russia)|Chief of the General Staff]]; weapons can also be launched using the automated [[Dead Hand]] system. The [[Supreme Leader (North Korean title)|Supreme Leader]] has authority in [[North Korea]]. India, Pakistan and Israel have committees for such a decision.<ref name = "UCS Launch Authority">Union of Concerned Scientists https://www.ucsusa.org/sites/default/files/attach/2017/11/Launch-Authority.pdf Accessed 21 February 2021</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
|+ 
|-
! Nation !! Authority !! Notes 
|-
| {{flagicon|United States}} [[Nuclear weapons of the United States|United States]] || [[President of the United States]] || See the [[Nuclear football|Presidential Emergency Satchel]].<ref name="UCS Launch Authority"/><ref name = "UCS Whose Finger">Union of Concerned Scientists https://www.ucsusa.org/resources/whose-finger-button Accessed 30 January 2021</ref>
|-
| {{flagicon|Russia}} [[Russia and weapons of mass destruction|Russia]] || [[President of Russia]] || [[Cheget|Briefcases]] may also be issued to the [[Minister of Defence (Russia)|Minister of Defence]] and the [[Chief of the General Staff (Russia)|Chief of the General Staff]].<ref name="UCS Launch Authority"/><ref>{{cite journal |url=http://www.ccc.nps.navy.mil/si/2004/sep/tsypkinSept04.asp |title=Adventures of the "Nuclear Briefcase" |author=Mikhail Tsypkin |journal=Strategic Insights |volume=3 |issue=9 |date=September 2004 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040923072304/http://www.ccc.nps.navy.mil/si/2004/sep/tsypkinSept04.asp |archive-date=23 September 2004}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.themoscowtimes.com/article/1016/42/362896.htm |title=A 2nd Briefcase for Putin |author=Alexander Golts |newspaper=Moscow Times |date=20 May 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604040029/http://www.themoscowtimes.com/opinion/article/a-2nd-briefcase-for-putin/362896.html |archive-date=4 June 2011}}</ref><ref name="UCS Whose Finger"/>
|-
| {{flagicon|United Kingdom}} [[Nuclear weapons and the United Kingdom|United Kingdom]] || [[Monarchy of the United Kingdom|The British Monarch]]|| The Prime Minister exercises the [[Royal prerogative in the United Kingdom|Royal prerogative]] to direct the defence force.<ref name="UCS Launch Authority"/><ref name="UCS Whose Finger"/>
|-
| {{flagicon|France}} [[France and weapons of mass destruction|France]] || [[President of France]] || <ref name="UCS Launch Authority"/><ref name="UCS Whose Finger"/>
|-
| {{flagicon|China}} [[China and weapons of mass destruction|China]] || [[Central Military Commission (China)|Central Military Commission]] || <ref name="UCS Launch Authority"/><ref name="UCS Whose Finger"/>
|-
| {{flagicon|India}} [[India and weapons of mass destruction|India]] || [[Prime Minister of India]] || [[Nuclear Command Authority (India)|Nuclear Command Authority]] includes an Executive Council and a Political Council.<ref name="UCS Launch Authority"/><ref name="UCS Whose Finger"/>
|-
| {{flagicon|Pakistan}} [[Pakistan and weapons of mass destruction|Pakistan]] || [[National Command Authority (Pakistan)|National Command Authority]] || Requires a consensus of the council's members.<ref name="UCS Launch Authority"/><ref name="UCS Whose Finger"/>
|-
| {{flagicon|North Korea}} [[North Korea and weapons of mass destruction|North Korea]] || [[Supreme Leader (North Korean title)|Supreme Leader]] || <ref name="UCS Launch Authority"/>
|-
| {{flagicon|Israel}} [[Nuclear weapons and Israel|Israel]] || [[Prime Minister of Israel|Prime Minister]] || Requires agreement of the [[Ministry of Defense (Israel)#Minister of Defense|Minister of Defense]] and [[Chief of the General Staff (Israel)|Chief of the General Staff]].<ref name="UCS Launch Authority"/>
|}

==Nuclear weapons sharing==
{{Main|Nuclear sharing}}
{{see also|Germany and weapons of mass destruction|Italian nuclear weapons program|Netherlands and weapons of mass destruction}}
{| class="wikitable"; style="float" position="left"; margin-left:15px;"
|+U.S. nuclear weapons in host countries<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last1=Kristensen|first1=Hans M.|last2=Korda|first2=Matt|date=4 May 2019|title=United States nuclear forces, 2019|journal=Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists|language=en|volume=75|issue=3|pages=122–134|doi=10.1080/00963402.2019.1606503|bibcode=2019BuAtS..75c.122K|issn=0096-3402|doi-access=free}}</ref>
! Country || Air base || Custodian || Warheads
|-
| {{TUR}} || [[Incirlik Air Base|Incirlik]] || [[39th Air Base Wing]] || 50
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{ITA}} || [[Aviano Air Base|Aviano]] || [[31st Fighter Wing]] || rowspan="2" | 40
|-
| [[Ghedi Air Base|Ghedi Torre]] || rowspan="4" | [[52nd Fighter Wing]]
|-
| {{GER}} || [[Büchel Air Base|Büchel]] || 20
|-
| {{NLD}} || [[Volkel Air Base|Volkel]] || 20
|-
| {{BEL}} || [[Kleine Brogel Air Base|Kleine Brogel]] || 20
|-
! colspan="3" | Total !! 150
|}

Under [[NATO]] [[nuclear weapons sharing]], the United States has provided nuclear weapons for Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Turkey to deploy and store.<ref name=NATOSharing>{{cite web |url=http://www.bits.de/public/researchnote/rn97-3.htm |title=Berlin Information-center for Transatlantic Security: NATO Nuclear Sharing and the N.PT – Questions to be Answered |publisher=Bits.de |access-date=15 May 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090519054302/http://www.bits.de/public/researchnote/rn97-3.htm |archive-date=19 May 2009 |url-status=live }}</ref> This involves pilots and other staff of the "non-nuclear" NATO states practicing, handling, and delivering the U.S. nuclear bombs, and adapting non-U.S. warplanes to deliver U.S. nuclear bombs. However, since all U.S. nuclear weapons are protected with [[Permissive Action Link]]s, the host states cannot easily arm the bombs without authorization codes from the [[United States Department of Defense|U.S. Department of Defense]].<ref>{{cite book|chapter-url=http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/~rja14/Papers/SE-11.pdf |title=Security Engineering: A Guide to Building Dependable Distributed Systems |chapter=Nuclear Command and Control |publisher=Ross Anderson, University of Cambridge Computing Laboratory |access-date=29 April 2010}}</ref> Former Italian President [[Francesco Cossiga]] acknowledged the presence of U.S. nuclear weapons in Italy.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://notizie.tiscali.it/articoli/politica/08/22/cossiga_atomica_in_italia_123.html|title=Cossiga: "In Italia ci sono bombe atomiche Usa"|access-date=16 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150928225725/http://notizie.tiscali.it/articoli/politica/08/22/cossiga_atomica_in_italia_123.html|archive-date=28 September 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> U.S. nuclear weapons were also deployed in [[Canada]] as well as [[Greece]] from 1963 to 1984. However, Canada withdrew three of the four nuclear-capable weapons systems by 1972. The single system retained, the [[AIR-2 Genie]], had a yield of 1.5 kilotons, was designed to strike enemy aircraft as opposed to ground targets, and might not have qualified as a weapon of mass destruction given its limited yield.<ref name="nrdc-euro">{{Cite journal |title=U.S. Nuclear Weapons in Europe |url=http://www.nrdc.org/nuclear/euro/euro.pdf |author=Hans M. Kristensen |date=February 2005 |publisher=[[Natural Resources Defense Council]] |access-date=23 May 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140723003003/http://www.nrdc.org/nuclear/euro/euro.pdf |archive-date=23 July 2014 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Members of the [[Non-Aligned Movement]] have called on all countries to "refrain from nuclear sharing for military purposes under any kind of security arrangements."<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20050508053154/http://www.un.org/events/npt2005/statements/npt02malaysia.pdf Statement on behalf of the non-aligned state parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons], 2 May 2005</ref> The Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad (ISSI) has criticized the arrangement for allegedly violating Articles I and II of the NPT, arguing that "these Articles do not permit the NWS to delegate the control of their nuclear weapons directly or indirectly to others."<ref>[http://www.issi.org.pk/journal/2000_files/no_4/article/6a.htm ISSI – NPT in 2000: Challenges ahead], Zafar Nawaz Jaspal, The Institute of Strategic Studies, Islamabad {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090109082520/http://www.issi.org.pk/journal/2000_files/no_4/article/6a.htm |date=9 January 2009 }}</ref> NATO has argued that the weapons' sharing is compliant with the NPT because "the U.S. nuclear weapons based in Europe are in the sole possession and under constant and complete custody and control of the United States."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nato.int/nato_static/assets/pdf/pdf_topics/20091022_NATO_Position_on_nuclear_nonproliferation-eng.pdf|title=NATO's Positions Regarding Nuclear Non-Proliferation, Arms Control and Disarmament and Related Issues|publisher=[[NATO]]|access-date=8 September 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130911033954/http://www.nato.int/nato_static/assets/pdf/pdf_topics/20091022_NATO_Position_on_nuclear_nonproliferation-eng.pdf|archive-date=11 September 2013|url-status=live}}</ref>

As of April 2019, the United States maintained around 150 nuclear weapons in Europe, as reflected in the accompanying table.<ref name=":0" />

==States formerly possessing nuclear weapons==
Nuclear weapons have been present in many nations, often as staging grounds under control of other powers. However, in only one instance has a nation given up nuclear weapons after being in full control of them. The [[Dissolution of the Soviet Union|fall of the Soviet Union]] left several [[Post-Soviet states|former Soviet republics]] in physical possession of nuclear weapons, though not operational control which was dependent on Russian-controlled electronic [[Permissive Action Link]]s and the Russian command and control system.<ref>{{cite book |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MNanc3lYUsQC |chapter=Why Ukraine gave up nuclear weapons : nonproliferation incentives and disincentives |author=William C. Martel |pages=88–104 |title=Pulling Back from the Nuclear Brink: Reducing and Countering Nuclear Threats |editor=Barry R. Schneider, William L. Dowdy |publisher=Psychology Press |year=1998 |isbn=9780714648569 |access-date=6 August 2014}}</ref><ref name="pikayev-1994">{{cite journal |url=http://cns.miis.edu/npr/pdfs/pikaye13.pdf |title=Post-Soviet Russia and Ukraine: Who can push the Button? |author=Alexander A. Pikayev |journal=The Nonproliferation Review |volume=1 |issue=3 |pages=31–46 |date=Spring–Summer 1994 |doi=10.1080/10736709408436550 |access-date=6 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140521083227/http://cns.miis.edu/npr/pdfs/pikaye13.pdf |archive-date=21 May 2014 |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[File:South African nuclear bomb casings.jpg|right|thumb|Alleged spare bomb casings from South Africa's nuclear weapon programme. Their purpose is disputed.<ref name=lewisSA>{{cite web|last1=Lewis|first1=Jeffrey|title=Revisiting South Africa's Bomb|url=http://www.armscontrolwonk.com/archive/1200544/revisiting-south-africas-bomb/|website=Arms Control Wonk. Leading Voice on Arms Control, Disarmament and Non-Proliferation|date=3 December 2015|access-date=6 December 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151206174810/http://www.armscontrolwonk.com/archive/1200544/revisiting-south-africas-bomb/|archive-date=6 December 2015|url-status=live}}</ref>]]

===South Africa===
{{Main|South Africa and weapons of mass destruction|Nuclear programme of South Africa}}

[[South Africa]] produced six nuclear weapons in the 1980s, but dismantled them in the early 1990s.

In 1979, there was a detection of a putative covert nuclear test in the [[Indian Ocean]], called the [[Vela incident]]. It has long been speculated that it was a test by Israel, in collaboration with and with the support of South Africa, though this has never been confirmed. South Africa could not have constructed such a nuclear bomb until November 1979, two months after the "double flash" incident.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/may/23/israel-south-africa-nuclear-weapons|title=Revealed: how Israel offered to sell South Africa nuclear weapons|last=McGreal|first=Chris|location=Washington, D.C.|date=24 May 2010|work=The Guardian|access-date=6 February 2022}}</ref>

South Africa acceded to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in 1991.<ref>[https://fas.org/nuke/guide/rsa/nuke/index.html Nuclear Weapons Program (South Africa)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016020250/https://fas.org/nuke/guide/rsa/nuke/index.html |date=16 October 2015 }}, [[Federation of American Scientists]] (29 May 2000).</ref><ref>Von Wielligh, N. & von Wielligh-Steyn, L. (2015). The Bomb – South Africa's Nuclear Weapons Programme. Pretoria: Litera.</ref>

===Former Soviet Republics===
{{See also|Nuclear weapons and Ukraine}}
* [[Belarus]] had 81 single warhead missiles stationed on its territory after the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. They were all transferred to Russia by 1996. In May 1992, Belarus acceded to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://fas.org/nuke/guide/belarus/index.html|title=Belarus Special Weapons|publisher=[[Federation of American Scientists]]|access-date=7 November 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151117022903/https://fas.org/nuke/guide/belarus/index.html|archive-date=17 November 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> On 28 February 2022, Belarus held a [[2022 Belarusian constitutional referendum|constitutional referendum]], in which it dropped its "Non-nuclear" status, in light of [[Belarusian involvement in the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Belarus votes to give up non-nuclear status |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/2/27/belarus-holds-referendum-to-renounce-non-nuclear-status |access-date=2022-03-01 |website=www.aljazeera.com |language=en}}</ref>
* [[Kazakhstan]] had 1,400 Soviet-era nuclear weapons on its territory and transferred them all to Russia by 1995, after Kazakhstan acceded to the NPT.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://fas.org/nuke/guide/kazakhstan/index.html|title=Kazakhstan Special Weapons|publisher=[[Federation of American Scientists]]|access-date=7 November 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151117015936/https://fas.org/nuke/guide/kazakhstan/index.html|archive-date=17 November 2015|url-status=live}}</ref>
* [[Ukraine]] had "as many as 3,000" nuclear weapons deployed on its territory when it became independent from the Soviet Union in 1991, equivalent to the third-largest nuclear arsenal in the world.<ref>[http://globalsecurity.org/wmd/world/ukraine/index.html Ukraine Special Weapons] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050401062100/http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/world/ukraine/index.html |date=1 April 2005 }}, GlobalSecurity.org</ref> At the time Ukraine acceded to the NPT in December 1994, Ukraine had agreed to dispose of all nuclear weapons within its territory.  The warheads were removed from Ukraine by 1996 and disassembled in Russia.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://fas.org/nuke/guide/ukraine/|title=Ukraine Special Weapons|publisher=[[Federation of American Scientists]]|access-date=7 November 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016045730/https://fas.org/nuke/guide/ukraine/|archive-date=16 October 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> Despite Russia's subsequent and internationally disputed [[Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation|annexation of Crimea]] in 2014, Ukraine reaffirmed its 1994 decision to accede to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty as a non-nuclear-weapon state.<ref>[https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2014/03/25/joint-statement-united-states-and-ukraine Joint Statement by the United States and Ukraine] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170216154310/https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2014/03/25/joint-statement-united-states-and-ukraine |date=16 February 2017 }}, 25 March 2014.</ref>

In connection with their accession to the NPT, all three countries received assurances that that their sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity would be respected, as stated in the [[Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances]]. This agreement has been criticized as ineffective since the [[Russo-Ukrainian War]], in which [[Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation|Russia annexed Crimea]], [[War in Donbas|occupied Eastern Ukraine]], and [[2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine|invaded the remainder of the country]] with no direct response.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Borda |first=Aldo Zammit |title=Ukraine war: what is the Budapest Memorandum and why has Russia's invasion torn it up? |url=http://theconversation.com/ukraine-war-what-is-the-budapest-memorandum-and-why-has-russias-invasion-torn-it-up-178184 |access-date=2022-05-05 |website=The Conversation |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Pifer |first=Steven |date=2014-04-12 |title=The Budapest Memorandum and U.S. Obligations |url=https://www.brookings.edu/blog/up-front/2014/12/04/the-budapest-memorandum-and-u-s-obligations/ |access-date=2022-05-05 |website=Brookings |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Welle (www.dw.com) |first=Deutsche |title=Ukraine's forgotten security guarantee: The Budapest Memorandum {{!}} DW {{!}} 05.12.2014 |url=https://www.dw.com/en/ukraines-forgotten-security-guarantee-the-budapest-memorandum/a-18111097 |access-date=2022-05-05 |website=DW.COM |language=en-GB}}</ref>

==See also==
{{cols|colwidth=21em}}
* [[Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty]]
* [[Doomsday Clock]]
* [[Historical nuclear weapons stockpiles and nuclear tests by country]]
* [[International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons]]
* [[No first use]]
* [[Nuclear disarmament]]
* [[Nuclear latency]]
* [[Nuclear power]]
* [[Nuclear proliferation]]
* [[Nuclear terrorism]]
* [[Nuclear war]]
* [[Nuclear-weapon-free zone]]
{{colend}}

== Notes ==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Bibliography==
{{Refbegin}}
* {{cite book| title=The Military Balance 2012| author=International Institute for Strategic Studies |author-link=International Institute for Strategic Studies | editor-last=Hackett |editor-first = James | date=7 March 2012 | publisher=[[Routledge]] |location= London, England | isbn=978-1857436426 | ref=IISS2012 }}
* {{Citation | title = The Third Temple's holy of holies: Israel's nuclear weapons | first = Warner D. | last = Farr | series = The Counterproliferation Papers, Future Warfare Series | volume = 2 | publisher = USAF Counterproliferation Center, Air War College, Air University, Maxwell Air Force Base | url = https://fas.org/nuke/guide/israel/nuke/farr.htm |date=September 1999 | access-date = 2 July 2006 }}.
* [https://www.belfercenter.org/publication/when-did-and-didnt-states-proliferate Philipp C. Bleek, “When Did (and Didn’t) States Proliferate? Chronicling the Spread of Nuclear Weapons,” Discussion Paper (Cambridge, MA: Project on Managing the Atom, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, June 2017).]
{{Refend}}

==External links==
* [http://globalsecurity.org/wmd/world/index.html Globalsecurity.org{{spaced ndash}}World Special Weapons Guide]
* [http://nuclearweaponarchive.org/ The Nuclear Weapon Archive]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080920020429/http://thebulletin.metapress.com/content/0096-3402/?sortorder=asc&Article%20Category=Nuclear%20Notebook Nuclear Notebook] from [[Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists]]
* [http://www.nrdc.org/nuclear/euro/contents.asp U.S. Nuclear Weapons in Europe: A review of post-Cold War policy, force levels, and war planning] NRDC, February 2005
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20071208135127/http://www.pbs.org/newshour/indepth_coverage/military/proliferation/ Tracking Nuclear Proliferation] Online NewsHour with Jim Lehrer
* [[Stockholm International Peace Research Institute]]'s data on world nuclear forces
* [http://wilsoncenter.org/nuclear-history-documents Nuclear Proliferation International History Project] For more on the history of nuclear proliferation see the Woodrow Wilson Center's Nuclear Proliferation International History Project website.
* [http://www.wilsoncenter.org/publication/proliferation-watch-us-intelligence-assessments-potential-nuclear-powers-1977%E2%80%932001 Proliferation Watch: US Intelligence Assessments of Potential Nuclear Powers, 1977–2001]

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{{DEFAULTSORT:States With Nuclear Weapons}}
[[Category:Nuclear weapons|*]]
[[Category:Cold War]]
[[Category:Military comparisons lists of countries|Nuclear weapons]]
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[[Category:Nuclear proliferation]]
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