Volume XXIV – Number 2
Douglas Steinel
Abstract: This article focuses on how the arms control and disarmament policies of both French and Chinese were once obstructionists during the arms control and disarmament period of the mid-1950s to the late 1970s. This was a result of the dissatisfaction of France and China with the international status quo that emerged from the post-World War Two era. This article also points out that as a result of the Second World War, there were drastic changes to the international system. One in particular was an intuitive taken by countries such as Soviet Union and the United States, to reduce the use of nuclear weapons. However, China and France disagreed with these changes, believing that possessing such powerful weapon symbolized one as the first ranking nation/ superpowers. Both countries decided to begin the development of their own nuclear weapons as a result to better themselves militarily, socially, and politically. Lastly, the article also highlights how the nuclear weapons that the French and Chinese built had minimal deterrent capability. Overall, while the Chinese and French were developing their nuclear weapons the ADC became one of the most important parts of the international political agenda.
Keywords: France, China, Arms control and disarmament, Post-World War Two era, mid-1950’s, Nuclear Weapons.
