GENEVA, Switzerland: Nearly 10,000 nuclear weapons are currently operational worldwide, with a combined explosive force equivalent to 135,000 Hiroshima bombs, according to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) report released on Thursday, German Press Agency (dpa) reported.
An atomic bomb was dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima on August 6, 1945 – the first time such a weapon had been used – killing more than 140,000 people.
The total number of nuclear warheads has been rising continuously since 2017, increasing by 141 last year, the ICAN report said.
Just over 40 per cent are said to be mounted on ballistic missiles in silos, on mobile launchers, or on submarines, and at bomber bases. The remainder are held in reserve.
In addition to the mounted warheads, the world’s nine nuclear powers are reported to hold nearly 2,500 more that have been decommissioned and are awaiting dismantling.
China, India, North Korea, Pakistan and Russia are expanding their arsenals, while France and the United States (US) are said to have similar plans. The nuclear powers also include the United Kingdom (UK) and Israel.
ICAN was the driving force behind the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) of 2021, for which the campaign received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2017. By the end of 2025, 99 countries had joined the treaty.
The nine nuclear powers are not among them, nor are their close allies – including Germany and other NATO countries.
Europe “stands out as a major obstacle to further progress toward universalisation of the TPNW”, the report said. – BERNAMA-dpa
