The politics of nuclear weapons / Andrew Futter.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 239-254) and index.

Description based on MARC record for print version.

chapter 1. What are nuclear weapons? -- chapter 2. Testing, defining and delivering nuclear weapons -- chapter 3. Nuclear proliferation : why states build or don't build the bomb -- chapter 4. Nuclear strategy : understanding the MADness -- chapter 5. Vertical proliferation challenges : assessing article VI of the NPT -- chapter 6. Horizontal proliferation challenges : the nuclear outliers -- chapter 7. Managing nuclear proliferation challenges : limiting, preventing and defending -- chapter 8. Nuclear weapons and new global actors -- chapter 9. Nuclear disarmament -- chapter 10. Enduring nuclear challenges.

This book provides an introduction to political and strategic aspects of nuclear weaponry. It offers an accessible overview of the concept of nuclear weapons, outlines how thinking about these weapons has developed and considers how nuclear threats can continue to be managed in the future.