Endogenous Nuclear Deterrence: The Bomb and Security in South Asia

Abstract

Discoveries in modern science have contributed immensely to the giant strides taken by humanity in subduing nature. At the same time, it has managed to discover new sinews of power to inflict irreparable damage to opponents, dissenters, and outliers in the realm of politics. The scientific revolution that led to the splitting up of atoms also resulted in the evolution of the atomic bomb. It was the ultimate expression of power maximization which lay latent in human beings. The article attempts to locate the presence of the ‘bomb’ in South Asia which stands in stark contrast to the neorealist logic of capability maximization in response to the anarchy at the ‘structural’ level. In other words, the article will attempt to trace the genealogy of the bomb and try to establish the endogenous origins of the ‘bomb’. Endogenous origins would imply anomalies at the ideational level, psychological scars, and the threat posed by the dominant ‘other’, culminating in the making of the nuclear bomb. Second, the article will seek to explore the debate between nuclear ‘optimists’ and ‘pessimists’ and contextualize it in South Asia. Lastly, the article would make a normative case for ‘human security’ as against ceaseless pursuit of ‘ontological security’ by both India and Pakistan.