Origin of International Nuclear Regimes and India

The international nuclear regimes emerged in world politics chiefly after the conclusion of World War to curb the manufacturing and spread of nuclear weapons in the world. Even the genesis of the Cold War can be traced to attitude of the USA of not to share nuclear bomb know how by it with the USSR. Under this situation, the USSR developed its own nuclear weapons in 1949 and later on UK, France and China also achieved that feat. Nuclear regimes are part of the international rules, procedures, guidelines, norms, regulations, principles and agreements that are created to control manufacturing, export or transfer of nuclear materials, technologies, fuels, processes and methods. Nuclear regimes affect other countries that are not members particularly developing countries like India. The primary objective of regimes is to curb nuclear proliferation, reduce nuclear arsenals and stockpiles. Liberal Institutionalists and Realists acknowledge that regimes are an important feature of international relations and they represent the response of rational actors operating within the anarchic structure of the international system. The regimes have restricted developing countries from developing their nuclear programmes and making use of advance technologies by putting various types of controls. The countries such as India has been vociferously opposed the discrimination meted out to them by the regimes. India too has seen the negative impact of regimes on various occasions, though it has survived and sustained each time with a remarkable success.