ABSTRACT
The nuclear weapon has existed for over six decades. It is a familiar technology which has generated a now familiar set of political responses. Yet its capacity to disturb, in every sense of the word, seems undiminished. This is due partly to political and military predicaments that have found no resolution. It is also due to the technology’s diffusion which, at each stage and in whichever context, has given rise to new fears, created new instabilities, and generated demands for action which have seldom satisfied.
