Towards a Third Nuclear Age? Strategic Conventional Weapons and the Next Revolution in Global Nuclear Order

The world stands on the cusp of a major transformation in nuclear affairs. This paradigmatic shift is being driven by the development and deployment of an entirely new class of strategic weaponry, facilitated by the latest information revolution. The most important characteristics of these weapons are that they are all hi-tech and non-nuclear; that they can be used against an adversarys nuclear forces, and that they are increasingly able to augment and even replace nuclear weapons for key national security functions. Taken together, we can think of these of these systems as Strategic Conventional Weapons (SCW), and as representing a fundamental challenge to the way that our nuclear world is managed. SCW raise questions about deterrence strategy, mutually assured destruction, future arms racing and arms control, and how best to retain and maintain global nuclear stability and peace. NUCLEARREV will therefore provide the first ever systematic scholarly study of SCW, make the case for a paradigmatic shift in nuclear studies, set the stage for a complete rethinking of the global nuclear order. The main research question is: How will Strategic Conventional Weapons change the Global Nuclear Order? To answer this the objectives are to: Chart the SCW phenomenon, globally; Analyse how SCW will impact regional nuclear relations and balances; Examine what the development of SCW means for the frameworks and dogma that govern international nuclear relations; Make the case for a revolution in nuclear affairs and define the embryonic Third Nuclear Age. This urgently required research will provide the landmark study of this phenomenon and the centrepiece for a whole new generation of interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary work on nuclear affairs. The project combines interviews with politicians, defence contractors, scientists, bureaucrats, and experts across the world; an innovative War Game exercise, as well as extensive archival research and Regional Feedback Workshops.