Roberts, Joey Mr. Haskell World History 19 September 2004 Unresolved Problems Newspaper The United States Can Lower Nuclear Threat Here�s the Solution The problem with nuclear proliferation is getting worse every day and now 40+ nations have nuclear capability. Here is a step by step solution on how the United States can reduce, not eliminate, the threat of nuclear warfare in the world today. Hiroshima explosion First, the United States has to take charge and organize a summit meeting, a meeting with the top leaders of each nation with nuclear power. The United States has to be realistic and know that all 40+ nations won�t show up for this meeting, but let�s say about 25 nations show up. The United States has to persuade them to give up their nuclear weapons in exchange for financial aid or even military protection. If eighty-percent of the nations who attend this summit meeting agree to this solution, this will be a huge step in the right direction. This will reduce the number of countries with nuclear weapons to about twenty. The second step is for the United States to meet with the other global powers like Russia and China and talk about the problem of too many countries having nuclear weapons. The United States will present a plan to the two countries in which, in the end, there will be only three countries with nuclear power, the United States, Russia and China. The hope is that China and Russia will work hard to get the remaining eighteen or so nuclear threat nations to eliminate their nuclear weapons. For example, China will have a better chance of influencing South Korea because its location and history. If Russia and China can get fifteen of the eighteen countries to eliminate their nuclear weapons this will be another huge step in the right direction. If the first two steps work the world will be a safer place because nuclear weapons will be found in the United States, Russia, China and three or four less powerful nations. This is a better situation than having more than 40 countries with nuclear weapons. The third step might take years or even decades. The United States, Russia and China need to lead the way and hold public meetings with the remaining countries who have nuclear weapons. These meetings might be held by the United Nations but the goal is to find a way to get these nations to give of their weapons before millions of people die. These people might die because there is a nuclear accident or because there is a war. Either way, people will be dead and the radiation won�t go away for hundreds of years. Nuclear Proliferation needs to be the #1 priority for the United States for five reasons that are obvious to everyone. 1. Nations that are trying to create their first nuclear weapons are going to have accidents and nuclear accidents kill people and ruin the environment. 2. Nuclear weapons can never be used just to hit a military target. Innocent people who live within miles of the target will die and the land will be ruined for years because of radiation. 3. People read about Hiroshima and Nagasaki and think nothing could be worse than that. In reality we�ve had sixty years to make the bomb stronger because of technology. If a nuclear weapon is used, we need to expect millions of deaths, not just thousands. 4. The time spent creating nuclear weapons should be spent creating safe nuclear power. The nuclear power can be used to replace fuels like gas and oil. 5. Terrorists would love to use nuclear weapons. If countries don�t have nuclear weapons, terrorists don�t have a place to steal the weapons from.
