Introduction

More than two decades after the end of the Cold War, during which the animosity and rivalry between the two superpowers provided the main rationale behind creating a 'balance of terror' by developing nuclear arsenals, nuclear weapons and efforts to contain their development are still a hot topic in international politics. President Obama's initial attempt 'to make nuclear disarmament a centrepiece of American defence policy'. The threat of nuclear proliferation and use becomes obviously more serious in those parts of the world that have any source of tension and conflict; which is the case for Asia. As demonstrated by the Global Conflict Tracker, the majority of the world's conflicts with 'critical' or 'significant' impact are located in Asia. The three regions of the Middle East, South and East Asia are particularly fraught with numerous threats emanating from power rivalries, border and territorial disputes, ethnic and religious conflicts, etc.