ABSTRACT
Israel’s pathway to security has been intrinsically linked to cutting-edge technology, whereby policymakers in Tel Aviv have actively sought to maximise the benefits of technological innovation, and this applies to advanced and strategic non-nuclear weapons today. Notwithstanding the unacknowledged nuclear weapons capability, Israeli officials appear determined to pursue non-nuclear technological solutions in order to enhance the country’s national security vis-à-vis a changing regional environment in the Third Nuclear Age. While nuclear deterrence remains a vital element within Israel’s military doctrine, prioritising advanced strategic weaponry (both offensive and defensive) seems to be the country’s chosen pathway to security. While Israel’s approaches to technological and normative shifts have been linear and consistent, elites have been cautiously adjusting to China’s “rise” and carefully positioning the country in its triangulation between the United States and China. Israel consistently resists the nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament normative framework, and this seems unlikely to change in the Third Nuclear Age.
