Pakistan's Nuclear Weapons: Proliferation and Security Issues

Abstract

Pakistan's nuclear arsenal consists of approximately 60 nuclear warheads. Pakistan continues fissile material production for weapons, and is adding to its weapons production facilities and delivery vehicles. Pakistan reportedly stores its warheads unassembled with the fissile core separate from non-nuclear explosives, and these are stored separately from their delivery vehicles. Pakistan does not have a stated nuclear policy, but its "minimum credible deterrent" is thought to be primarily a deterrent to Indian military action. Command and control structures have been dramatically overhauled since September 11, 2001 and export controls and personnel security programs have been put in place since the 2004 revelations about Pakistan's top nuclear scientists, A.Q. Khan's international proliferation network.

Open PDF

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
May 15, 2009
Accession Number
ADA500937

Entities

People

  • Mary B. Nikitin
  • Paul K. Kerr

Organizations

  • Library of Congress

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Counter WMD
  • Energy and Power Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Aircrafts
  • Arms Control
  • Command And Control
  • Command And Control Systems
  • Control Systems
  • Employment
  • Fissile Materials
  • Governments
  • Law
  • National Security
  • Nuclear Energy
  • Nuclear Materials
  • Nuclear Weapons
  • Security
  • Terrorists
  • United States
  • Weapons Of Mass Destruction

Fields of Study

  • Physics
  • Political science

Readers

  • East Asian Political and Security Studies within the Soviet Union
  • Life Cycle Cost Analysis
  • Strategic Security Studies

Technology Areas

  • Fully Networked C3