A Guide to the WorldʼsNuclear Warheads CountJuly 2018

Introduction“The Worldʼs Nuclear Warheads Counts” is aneasily understood illustration of the current
state of the world we live in, showing more than
14,000 nuclear warheads in the world bycountry and by type.
The PCU Nagasaki Council for Nuclear WeaponsAbolition (PCU-NC) and the Research Centerfor Nuclear Weapons Abolition, Nagasaki
University (RECNA) began producing thisposter in 2013 as an educational resource for
all audiences, from elementary school students
to adults.
As part of the peace education eﬀorts carriedout every August at Hiroshimaʼs and NagasakiʼsAtomic Bomb Memorials, we present annual
updates on the latest information every June.
The detailed data of this poster, which wascompiled by the “RECNA Nuclear Warhead
Data Monitoring Team,” including RECNA
staﬀ, has been published on our website.
(http://www.recna.nagasaki-u.ac.jp/recna/nuclear1/nuclear̲list̲201806) Please see the website forfurther details. This data is updated from time
to time.
We hope this guide will aid those using theposter in understanding background informationand terminology in simple, plain terms. It shouldbe especially useful in the education ﬁeld,
particularly in schools.
July 2018
PCU Nagasaki Council for Nuclear WeaponsAbolition (PCU-NC)
Research Center for Nuclear WeaponsAbolition, Nagasaki University (RECNA)

Contact

PCU Nagasaki Council for
Nuclear Weapons Abolition (PCU-NC)

1-14, Bunkyo-machi, Nagasaki, 852-8521
TEL: +81-95-819-2252 FAX: +81-95-819-2165

http://www.recna.nagasaki-u.ac.jp/recna/pcu-en/

14,450PCU Nagasaki Council for
Nuclear Weapons Abolition (PCU-NC)
Research Center for Nuclear WeaponsAbolition, Nagasaki University (RECNA)

Frequently Asked
Questions
Q1. What is the diﬀerence between a nuclear
warhead and a nuclear weapon ?
The fact that atomic bombs were dropped onHiroshima and Nagasaki by U.S. B29 bombers is wellknown. Nowadays, there is a diverse range of nuclear
weapons, including various kinds of missiles, artillery
shells, and torpedoes, in addition to nuclear bombs
similar to the ones dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
A “warhead” is the part of a nuclear weapon thatcauses an explosion. A nuclear warhead is the heartof the weapon, but the warhead alone is notconsidered a weapon. Complete nuclear weaponsconsist of a number of parts, including componentsthat can detonate the bomb at any speciﬁc altitude
and guide it towards its target. Except for bombsthat are dropped in a freefalling manner, nuclear
bombs are often equipped with an engine. Sincebombs are designed to be compact, it can be
difﬁcult to distinguish where the warhead is exactly
located. If the nuclear warhead and the missile thatcarries it are separable, the missile is called a “delivery vehicle”.

Q2. What is the diﬀerence between anuclear weapon and an atomic bomb ?
An atomic bomb is a type of nuclear weapon.
Nuclear weapons are roughly divided into twotypes: atomic bomb and hydrogen bomb. An
atomic bomb uses the energy released by theﬁssion of a uranium or plutonium nucleus. On
the other hand, a hydrogen bomb uses themore powerful energy from the fusion ofhydrogen nuclei. The nuclear fusion process
requires a high temperature and pressure,triggered by an atomic bomb explosion. Nearly
all modern nuclear weapons produce a large

amount of energy by using a combination of
nuclear ﬁssion and fusion. The most powerful
nuclear weapon ever created by mankind thus
far was a hydrogen bomb called “Tsar Bomba”(meaning “the Emperor of Bombs”), which wasdetonated by the Soviet Union on the island of
Novaya Zemlya in the Arctic Circle on October30, 1961. Its explosive yield was 50 megatons,
which is 3,800 times that of the atomic bomb
detonated over Hiroshima.
Rathe r than prom oting a Col d W ar e ra -likeincre ase in the power and numbers of nuclear
weapons, current technological advances havefocused on miniaturizing nuclear warheads,
multiplying the number of warheads that can beloaded in a single missile, and increasing theaccuracy of missiles. It is an unfortunate reality
in the world today that the nuclear powers
continue to possess long-term programs for themodernization and capacity-building of their
nuclear arsenals.

Q3. North Korea s nuclear weapons:
How advanced are they?
Development of nuclear weapons by the Democratic Peopleʼs Republic ofKorea (DPRK or North Korea) has been of serious concern to theinternational community. In 2006, the DPRK conducted its ﬁrst undergroundnuclear explosive test, following the declaration of its withdrawal from theNuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in January 2003. In spite of repeatedcalls from the international community for it to terminate nuclear testing, theDPRK has conducted additional ﬁve nuclear tests --- in 2009, 2013, 2016
(January and September) and September 2017. Moreover, the DPRK has
been pouring effort into developing nuclear-capable missiles, and has
repeatedly conducted various missile test launches.
Actually, the overall picture of the DPRKʼs nuclear program is unclear.
Although on our poster we estimate the number of nuclear warheads
possessed by the DPRK to be 10-20, there is no agreed estimation among
researchers and research institutes, and no one knows the exact ﬁgures.
Nevertheless, it is almost certain that the nuclear technology of the DPRK
has advanced steadily, and many experts are raising serious concerns thatthe DPRK has already succeeded in making its nuclear warheads smallenough so that they can be ﬁt onto their missiles.
On the other hand, it should be noted that some diplomatic efforts aimed atdenuclearizing the Korean Peninsula have borne fruit since the beginning of
2018. In April, an inter-Korean summit meeting was held and the leaders ofNorth and South Korea released the historic Panmunjom Declaration. The
leaders of the United States and North Korea then met for the ﬁrst time inJune, and signed a joint statement, reafﬁrming their efforts to build a lastingand stable peace regime on the Korean Peninsula and the DPRKʼscommitment to work toward complete denuclearization of the Korean
Peninsula. Although there still remain many challenges that need to be
overcome to achieve denuclearization, the recent development marks theﬁrst step toward reducing tension and building peace in the region.

Q4. Will the adopted nuclear weapons bantreaty eliminate nuclear weapons?
On July 7, 2017, the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear
Weapons was adopted. This is the ﬁrst international law
to categorically outlaw all nuclear weapons. Based oninternational humanitarian law, this ground-breaking
treaty prohibits signatories from developing, testing,possessing, using, or threatening to use nuclearweapons, as well as assisting or encouraging anyone toengage in any activity prohibited under the treaty.
Recognizing the unacceptable suffering of victims,
including the OPIHR\ZOH of Hiroshima and Nagasaki andthose affected by the testing of nuclear weapons, thetreaty articulates the positive obligation of signatories toadequately provide assistance to these victims. The
efforts of civil society̶including the OPIHR\ZOH ofHiroshima and Nagasaki, as well as many like-mindedcountries that have acted in concert with civil society
movements̶ to raise awareness of the inhumanity of
nuclear weapons have ﬁnally borne fruit.
Of course, the adoption of a ban treaty does not
automatically means that we will soon achieve the goal ofabolishing nuclear weapons. Countries with nuclear
weapons and those under the “nuclear umbrella” have been
taking a negative stance toward the treaty and are unlikely
to join it, at least for the time being. However, the adoptionof this treaty, which clearly brands nuclear weapons asillegal, will help to stigmatize such weapons. Nuclear
weapons are now not only immoral, but also illegal̶thisfact can exert further pressure on those countries relying
on nuclear deterrence to review their policies.

The United States and Russia Own 92% of the World s Nuclear Warheads
The nine countries that possess nuclear warheads are the United States, Russia, France, theUnited Kingdom, China, Pakistan, India, Israel, and North Korea.
Five of these countries̶ the United States, Russia, France, the United Kingdom, and China̶aredeﬁned by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) as Nuclear Weapon States, as they wereconducting nuclear testing at the time of NPT negotiations. India, Pakistan, and Israel possess
nuclear weapons outside of the NPT framework. North Korea withdrew from the NPT in 2003.
Comparing the sizes of the areas bordered by the brown dotted lines you will see that thenumbers of nuclear weapons possessed by the United States and Russia are almost equal. In thecurrent post-Cold War era, relations have improved between these two countries, but nuclearweapons remain in a state of “high alert” in which they can still be ﬁred at any time within amatter of minutes. The risk of nuclear disaster̶whether by design, human error, or accident̶continues to exist.
The United States and Russia committed to reduce the number of deployed strategic nuclear
warheads held by each country to 1,550 or less under the New START Treaty, which entered

Types of Delivery Vehicles andNuclear Warheads
The types of delivery vehicles for nuclear
warheads are divided into the following three
categories. Each icon represents ﬁve
nuclear warheads.

Nuclear warheads deployed atsea; e.g., Submarine-LaunchedBallistic Missiles (SLBMs)
SLBM“Submarine-Launched Ballistic Missiles (SLBM)”
Ballistic missiles capable of being
launched from submarines.

Nuclear warheads deployedon land; e.g., Intercontinental
Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs)
ICBM“Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBM)”
Land-based ballistic missiles with a range
of 5,500 km or more.

Nuclear warheads
carried by aircraft;e.g., bombers●●● All three of these categories contain nuclear
warheads that are either “operationally deployed strategic
nuclear warheads”, “operationally deployed non-strategic nuclearwarheads”, or “reserve/non-deployed nuclear warheads”.
“Reserve/non-deployed nuclear warheads”
Reserved warheads which are notoperationally deployed, but are stored
for possible future use.

In addition the above, we haveestablished a category for “retiredand to-be-dismantled” warheads. Althoughthese nuclear warheads have been retired
from military stockpiles and stored fordismantlement, this does not necessarily
eliminate the possibility of their reuse.

into force in February 2011. The reduction levels envisaged by the treaty were achieved by bothcountries before the deadline in February 2018. However, this falls far short of a substantial
reduction in their nuclear arsenals, since the United States only reduced its arsenal by a coupleof hundred rounds, while Russia had already achieved the goals under the treaty when it enteredinto force. With the deterioration of US-Russia relations over the Ukraine and Syria situations,
there does not appear to be any sign of progress in discussions on a successor treaty to theNew START.
In February, the US Trump Administration released the Nuclear Posture Review (NPR),
which establishes a guideline for US nuclear policy. It expressed the administrationʼswillingness to strengthen US nuclear deterrence to confront threats posed by North Korea
and Russia, radically reversing a policy“Operationally Deployed Nuclearof the former Obama Administration
Warheads”
to pursue a world free from nuclear
Nuclear warheads which are deployed atweapons.
a military unit and are capable of use.
“Strategic Nuclear Weapons”
Nuclear warheads to be mounted on nuclear
weapons for the purpose of attacking enemy
cities and major military installations. Non-strategic
nuclear weapons, by contrast, have a more limited
usage in battleﬁeld situations. Non-strategic
nuclear weapons include “tactical nuclearweapons” and “theater nuclear weapons.”

Nuclear Bombs in Germany
and Italy
The United States deploys about 180
non-strategic nuclear warheads inﬁve NATO countries (Belgium,Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, andTurkey). This deployment is a relic of
the Cold War. Calls for removing
these weapons have been growing
within Europe, but they have yet to berealized.

Two Minutes Left to Nuclear
Annihilation?
Drawn on the image of the Earth in the centeris the “Doomsday Clock.” Continuously
published since its ﬁrst publication in the
Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists in 1947, thiscountdown to midnight represents thecountdown to annihilation of humankind by
nuclear war, symbolizing how close we are toa global crisis.
The closest the world has ever been to
doomsday was in 1953, when the countdown
was two minutes to midnight, due to thesuccess of hydrogen bomb tests by theSoviet Union. In January 2018, the clock wasput 30 seconds forward to “two minutes tomidnight,” the closest ever to the worldʼsdoomsday again. The reasons for moving theclock include the escalation of North Korean
nuclear threat, modernization of nuclear
arsenals of nuclear possessing states, andheightening tensions in regions such as
Asia-Paciﬁc, South Asia, and Middle East.

The Total Number of Nuclear Warheads in the World: Approx. 14,450
As of June 2018, the total number of nuclear warheads in the world is approximately 14,450. Information about nuclear weapons is generally kept as a state secret, so countries do not usually publish detailed data about them. As such, researchers and experts all of theworld who are tackling this issue must estimate the number, types, and operational status of the nuclear weapons possessed by eachcountry. This poster was created following careful examination of information from various sources.
What is your impression of the number of nuclear warheads of “14,450”? At the peak of the Cold War in 1987, the world had nearly
70,000 nuclear warheads. The number of nuclear warheads has been signiﬁcantly reduced, but at a very slow rate. Our capability for “overkill” -- to kill all life on Earth multiple times over -- has not changed.
As of last year (June 2017), the total number of nuclear warheads was 14,900; that is, the world managed to dismantle 450 nuclear
warheads over the previous year. However, this is not a simple situation. All nine of the worldʼs nuclear powers have plans for modernizing
their nuclear arsenals. As their nuclear weapons systems gradually become obsolete, so countries have been planning to renew them. It
should be noted that such plans involve enormous budgets.