ABSTRACT
This chapter presents nuclear deterrence. The use of military force, including nuclear force, would therefore once again become a rational option for the remaining nuclear superpower to exploit against the other superpower or his allies, for the costs of such action would no longer necessarily appear prohibitively high. Nuclear weapons have long been banned from national armouries and the world authority carries out regular and reliable inspections to ensure that the ban remains fully in force. In such a world the risk of nuclear war, if not entirely eliminated, might be considered very small. A technological solution, such as that offered by comprehensive strategic defence, is unlikely to be forthcoming. The only alternatives to nuclear deterrence currently available would therefore appear to be unilateral pacifism, whether complete or nuclear, and to either of these options there are grave objections.
