The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) warned of a world with up to 25 nuclear-armed countries.
“Without wanting to spread panic,” Rafael Grossi told the Italian daily newspaper La Repubblica for a story published on Sunday, the risk of a nuclear conflict is higher today than in the past.
Grossi suggested that at some point 20 to 25 countries could have nuclear weapons, though he did not specify a time frame. Currently, there are nine nuclear powers, according to several experts.
“The process of disarmament or the controlled reduction of nuclear arsenals has come to a standstill,” said the IAEA chief. “Those who possess nuclear weapons are producing more of them, including China.” He also noted that there is increasingly casual talk of tactical nuclear strikes, which he described as troubling.
Grossi said he is worried that leaders in several countries have announced their intention to acquire nuclear weapons. Asked to name the countries, Grossi said: “As the director of the IAEA, I cannot say. These are important countries in Asia, Asia Minor and the Persian Gulf. A world with 20 to 25 nuclear-armed states is unpredictable and dangerous.”
The nine nuclear-armed states include the five permanent members of the UN Security Council – the United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, France and China – as well as India, Pakistan, North Korea and Israel, according to a report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) and information from the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN).
Together, they are estimated to possess approximately 12,000 nuclear weapons, though Russia and the United States account for some 10,700 of those.
