India goes nuclear: rationale, benefits, costs and implications

A whole host of reasons led India to test five nuclear weapons in May 1998, an action which prompted Pakistan to follow suit some two weeks later. These series of tests took place at a time of unprecedented economic turbulence, and political and strategic flux in Asia. The tests might potentially lead to the geopolitical map of post-Cold War Asia being redrawn. This article examines the implications of India's nuclear tests for the future of the nuclear non-proliferation regime, nuclear deterrence, Sino-Indian rivalry for power and influence in the twenty-first century, and the changing balance of power in the Asia-Pacific region.
There is nothing quite like a big bang to focus minds, shatter prevalent myths and draw the attention of the whole world. With three big bangs on the afternoon of [...]