Asia-Pacific Summit
Nuclear Proliferation
Nine countries — U.S., U.K. Russia, France, China, Israel, India, Pakistan, and North Korea — are known to possess nuclear weapons. Five, including China, are under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), first signed in 1968. The NPT forbids the manufacture or acquisition of nuclear weapons and calls for peaceful use of nuclear power. In addition to the treaty, China also has a security assurance that they will not use or threaten to use nuclear weapons on countries without them. China currently has over 200 warheads.
North Korea is a recent nuclear power. There is reason to believe the nation began building nuclear weapons after they withdrew from the NPT in 1993. The state successfully tested a nuclear bomb in October 2006 and another in 2009. The country has also been building and testing missiles, causing concern in other nations. Some are two-or three-stage rockets designed to travel thousands of miles. It is unknown whether these are capable of carrying nuclear warheads, but North Korea's weapon technology is improving and causing concern in other nations.
Diplomatic relations with North Korea are uneasy. The nation made progress in relations with the US and South Korea in the early 90s. The North agreed to cease production of nuclear weapons. The Agreed Framework with both nations was nullified in 2002 when North Korea admitted to having nuclear weapons. They are also threatening to export nuclear material. South Korea is most concerned with the North’s proliferation as are other nations in the East Asia Pacific region. These countries must meet to decide how to work with North Korea to remove the threat of nuclear war and the export of nuclear material.