Nuclear deterrence and disarmament are not necessarily incompatible tools for reducing nuclear dangers. A new paper from our researcher Lauren Sukin and colleagues point to several ways that individuals might simultaneously accommodate both pro- and anti-nuclear weapons policy positions. To investigate this proposition, the article offers a new observational dataset on global nuclear attitudes from a survey conducted in 24 countries on six continents (N = 27,250). The data strongly confirm that publics do not subscribe to categorical views of nuclear weapons and instead value both deterrence and disarmament.
Can nuclear deterrence and disarmament go hand in hand? Evidence from 24 countries shows they do