Global nuclear weapon stockpiles are expanding and being modernised, indicating the onset of a “dangerous” arms race coinciding with a decline in arms control measures, says the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
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In the 56th edition of the ‘SIPRI Yearbook 2025’, the think tank said that the nine nuclear-armed nations namely, China, France, India, Israel, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia, the UK and the US had persisted in upgrading their nuclear capabilities in 2024.
Some of these nations also deployed new weapon systems capable of carrying nuclear warheads in the year.
The estimated global inventory of nuclear warheads stood at 12,241 in January 2025. Of these, about 9,614 were considered active military stockpiles ready for potential use, which is an increase from the previous year by approximately 29 warheads.
An estimated 3,912 of these warheads were deployed with operational missile and aircraft systems, mirroring the numbers from January 2024. The rest were stored centrally.
The yearbook notes that close to 2,100 of the deployed warheads were on high alert status on ballistic missiles, which are predominantly owned by Russia or the US. A smaller number of high-alert warheads are believed to be maintained by France, the UK, and potentially China.
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