Nuclear Energy Security: Emerging Trends and Pakistan

The demand for nuclear energy has increased in recent years mainly in the developing countries of the Asia-Pacific. Despite the Japanese (Fukushima) nuclear power plant accident in 2011, the nuclear power industry is expected to inflate exponentially in the coming decade to maintain the delicate bal...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Rizwana Abbasi
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Pluto Journals 2016-01-01
Series:Policy Perspectives
Online Access:https://www.scienceopen.com/hosted-document?doi=10.13169/polipers.13.2.0167
Description
Summary:The demand for nuclear energy has increased in recent years mainly in the developing countries of the Asia-Pacific. Despite the Japanese (Fukushima) nuclear power plant accident in 2011, the nuclear power industry is expected to inflate exponentially in the coming decade to maintain the delicate balance between sustainable socioeconomic development and environmental fortification. Therefore, an overwhelming majority of states are inclined to add nuclear power plants to their national grids. India and Pakistan, neither party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation treaty (NPT) nor members of the Nuclear Supplier Group (NSG), are included in the list of new contenders. These two institutional arrangements forbid nuclear cooperation with states that have unsafeguarded facilities and are not party states to the NPT. Besides, India has been mainstreamed in international nuclear commerce whereas Pakistan is deprived of similar rights despite the fact that energy deficiency plagues its socioeconomic developments. The study finds that the existing, ambiguous construct that promotes peaceful uses of nuclear technology and simultaneously opposes nuclear proliferation is not consistent with 21 st century's realities. Therefore, the non-proliferation construct necessitates revisions in order to meet the contemporary demands to address developing states' energy needs based on a renewed framework.
ISSN:1812-1829
1812-7347