Nuclear umbrella
Encyclopedia
Nuclear umbrella refers to a guarantee by a nuclear weapons state to defend a non-nuclear allied state.
It is usually used for the security alliances of the United States
with Japan
, South Korea
, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (much of Europe
, Turkey
, Canada
), and Australia
, originating with the Cold War
with the Soviet Union
.
For some countries it was an alternative to acquiring nuclear weapons themselves; other alternatives include regional Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone
s.
and, from the beginning, assumed American nuclear power as a major component of defense of Western Europe
from possible Soviet invasion. Most non-Communist European states joined the alliance, although some (Ireland
, Switzerland
, Austria
, Sweden
, Finland
) instead maintained a policy of neutrality
. Sweden and Switzerland considered developing their own nuclear weapons but abandoned the idea.
NATO involved others of the five official nuclear weapons states. The United Kingdom
and Canada
participated in the initial American development of the atomic bomb (Manhattan Project
) during World War II
, but were afterwards excluded from nuclear weapons secrets by act of the US Congress. Britain launched an independent nuclear weapons program; after Britain successfully developed thermonuclear weapons, the US signed a treaty sharing American weapons designs, eliminating the need for independent development.
France
developed a nuclear force de frappe
and left the NATO command structure while continuing to be allied with the other Western countries.
After the end of the Cold War
, many Central and Eastern European countries joined NATO, although the original purpose of defense against the Soviet Union was by then obsolete. Some commentators opposed this NATO enlargement as unnecessarily provocative to Russia.
considered embarking on nuclear weapons development but finally agreed to sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
. Since then Australia has been a proponent of nuclear disarmament.
The ANZUS
alliance originally included Australia, New Zealand and the U.S., but after New Zealand's nuclear-free zone
was proclaimed, the U.S. no longer considered the country to be under its nuclear umbrella.
In April 2008, Hillary Clinton made headlines by proposing extension of the US nuclear umbrella over Israel
and other American allies in the Middle East
.
One article seems to consider Saudi Arabia
to be already under the US nuclear umbrella
and one book states that India
was given protection under the US nuclear umbrella after the Sino-Indian War
of 1962.
would provide an "umbrella" of another kind against nuclear attack. This is not the conventional usage of "nuclear umbrella", but a rhetorical device promoting active defense over the nuclear deterrence the conventional "nuclear umbrella" depends upon.
It is usually used for the security alliances of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
with Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (much of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
), and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, originating with the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
with the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
.
For some countries it was an alternative to acquiring nuclear weapons themselves; other alternatives include regional Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone
Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone
A nuclear-weapons-free zone, or NWFZ is defined by the United Nations as an agreement which a group of states has freely established by treaty or convention, that bans the use, development, or deployment of nuclear weapons in a given area, that has mechanisms of verification and control to enforce...
s.
NATO
NATO was formed early in the Cold WarCold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
and, from the beginning, assumed American nuclear power as a major component of defense of Western Europe
Western Europe
Western Europe is a loose term for the collection of countries in the western most region of the European continents, though this definition is context-dependent and carries cultural and political connotations. One definition describes Western Europe as a geographic entity—the region lying in the...
from possible Soviet invasion. Most non-Communist European states joined the alliance, although some (Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
) instead maintained a policy of neutrality
Neutrality (international relations)
A neutral power in a particular war is a sovereign state which declares itself to be neutral towards the belligerents. A non-belligerent state does not need to be neutral. The rights and duties of a neutral power are defined in Sections 5 and 13 of the Hague Convention of 1907...
. Sweden and Switzerland considered developing their own nuclear weapons but abandoned the idea.
NATO involved others of the five official nuclear weapons states. The United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
participated in the initial American development of the atomic bomb (Manhattan Project
Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project was a research and development program, led by the United States with participation from the United Kingdom and Canada, that produced the first atomic bomb during World War II. From 1942 to 1946, the project was under the direction of Major General Leslie Groves of the US Army...
) during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, but were afterwards excluded from nuclear weapons secrets by act of the US Congress. Britain launched an independent nuclear weapons program; after Britain successfully developed thermonuclear weapons, the US signed a treaty sharing American weapons designs, eliminating the need for independent development.
France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
developed a nuclear force de frappe
Force de frappe
The Force de Frappe is the designation of what used to be a triad of air-, sea- and land-based nuclear weapons intended for dissuasion, and consequential deterrence...
and left the NATO command structure while continuing to be allied with the other Western countries.
After the end of the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
, many Central and Eastern European countries joined NATO, although the original purpose of defense against the Soviet Union was by then obsolete. Some commentators opposed this NATO enlargement as unnecessarily provocative to Russia.
- Canada and weapons of mass destructionCanada and weapons of mass destructionCanada does not currently possess any weapons of mass destruction and has signed treaties repudiating possession of them. Canada ratified the Geneva Protocol in 1930 and the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty in 1970.- Introduction :...
ANZUS
As late as 1970, AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
considered embarking on nuclear weapons development but finally agreed to sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, commonly known as the Non-Proliferation Treaty or NPT, is a landmark international treaty whose objective is to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and weapons technology, to promote cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and to...
. Since then Australia has been a proponent of nuclear disarmament.
The ANZUS
ANZUS
The Australia, New Zealand, United States Security Treaty is the military alliance which binds Australia and New Zealand and, separately, Australia and the United States to cooperate on defence matters in the Pacific Ocean area, though today the treaty is understood to relate to attacks...
alliance originally included Australia, New Zealand and the U.S., but after New Zealand's nuclear-free zone
New Zealand's nuclear-free zone
In 1984, Prime Minister David Lange barred nuclear-powered or nuclear-armed ships from using New Zealand ports or entering New Zealand waters. Under the New Zealand Nuclear Free Zone, Disarmament, and Arms Control Act 1987, territorial sea, land and airspace of New Zealand became nuclear-free zones...
was proclaimed, the U.S. no longer considered the country to be under its nuclear umbrella.
US umbrella over others
"American nuclear umbrella" usually refers to the formal alliances above, but is occasionally used in other contexts.In April 2008, Hillary Clinton made headlines by proposing extension of the US nuclear umbrella over Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
and other American allies in the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
.
One article seems to consider Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
to be already under the US nuclear umbrella
and one book states that India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
was given protection under the US nuclear umbrella after the Sino-Indian War
Sino-Indian War
The Sino-Indian War , also known as the Sino-Indian Border Conflict , was a war between China and India that occurred in 1962. A disputed Himalayan border was the main pretext for war, but other issues played a role. There had been a series of violent border incidents after the 1959 Tibetan...
of 1962.
Russian nuclear umbrella
The term is far less used for Russian nuclear guarantees, but is seen occasionally.- http://www.sgpproject.org/Personal%20Use%20Only/RUSORT1500Continued.html Unspecified countries
- http://www.engdahl.oilgeopolitics.net/Geopolitics___Eurasia/Putin_s_Gas/putin_s_gas.html UkraineUkraineUkraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
, requested - http://books.google.com/books?id=iELgaxLgxmIC&pg=PA123&lpg=PA123&dq=%22russian+nuclear+umbrella%22&source=web&ots=ymwcmJKIKg&sig=d9cVMekwnlhoWcJ-RvLXb1zrYuQ&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=8&ct=result KazakhstanKazakhstanKazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
- http://www.acus.org/docs/0101-Strategic_Assessment_Central_Eurasia.pdf CISCISCIS usually refers to the Commonwealth of Independent States, a modern political entity consisting of eleven former Soviet Union republics.The acronym CIS may also refer to:-Organizations:...
Missile defense
Missile defenseMissile defense
Missile defense is a system, weapon, or technology involved in the detection, tracking, interception and destruction of attacking missiles. Originally conceived as a defence against nuclear-armed Intercontinental ballistic missiles , its application has broadened to include shorter-ranged...
would provide an "umbrella" of another kind against nuclear attack. This is not the conventional usage of "nuclear umbrella", but a rhetorical device promoting active defense over the nuclear deterrence the conventional "nuclear umbrella" depends upon.