The age of nuclear weapons really began when the U.S. used two atomic bombs on Japan at the end of World War II. The first bomb was dropped on the city of Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. The second bomb was dropped three days later on August 9, on the city of Nagasaki . These actions resulted in many thousands of deaths and the surrender of Japan. This was the first time that weapons of mass destruction were ever used. Many people were horrified by the prospects of there existing weapons that could inflict so much destruction. These actions changed the face of world relations not only then but forever.

Korea was told during WWII that when Japan was defeated, they would be independent. However, after the defeat of Japan, Korea was divided along the 38th parallel, with U.S. troops in the south and Soviet troops in the north . In the south, the U.S. backed right-wing political leaders while the Soviets supported the left-wing side. To create a new government, the United Nations setup nation wide elections but North Korea would not let them into the north. The elections went on in the south and on August 15, 1948, Syngman Rhee was elected as president of Korea . The independence of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, based in the north, was announced on September 9, 1948 with Kim II Sung as their leader . The Korean War began in 1950 when the south was invaded by the north. The U.N. and the U.S. came to the rescue of South Korea while the north had support from the Soviet Union and China. The reunification of Korea failed by the North Koreans and the Chinese army had to come in and save the North Koreans. The U.S., North and South Korea, and China all signed a treaty ending the war and Korea remained divided at the 38th parallel .

There are a few nations that cause alarm when it comes to nuclear weapons. Nations like: Iran, Iraq, Libya and North Korea either have nuclear weapons programs that are not a threat or their programs have been destroyed . In the past few decades, many nations have done away with their programs altogether. This is very promising but if larger nuclear powers do not do their jobs at monitoring one another, the current trend could reverse itself.

The main underlying conflict between the Soviet Union and the West was based on ideological beliefs. The leaders of the Soviet Union felt that capitalism was only out to destroy the Soviet system. In the U.S. the feeling was that the Soviet Union wanted world domination. One of the first conflicts was over Germany. After WWII, Germany, as well as Berlin, was divided among the U.S., Great Britain, France, and the Soviet Union. The Soviets had all of East Germany while West Germany was divided among the rest. Berlin was treated in the same manner . However, the U.S., Great Britain, and France combined their sections in an effort against the Soviets. The Soviets cut off land routes from the west to Berlin . The west airlifted supplies to East Berlin. Germany was divided into East and West Germany and Berlin was divided the same way. However, all of this came to an end with the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 .

In 1947, Pakistan became independent of India. The idea of the formation of separate Hindu and Muslim states had been around since the 1930's. As a result of the creation of Pakistan, around 8 million Hindus and Sikhs and about 6 million Muslims had to be relocated . However, the tensions between Pakistan and India sprang up over the area of Kashmir, which was and still is claimed by both sides. A war broke out between the two countries for control of Kashmir. It ended in 1949 with Pakistan given 40% control of Kashmir. This, however, was not the end of the matter . In 1965, another war was fought between the two countries and violence erupted again in 1971 . Since then, a war has not broken out but military fighting continues from time to time. It has been estimated that somewhere around 20,000 people have died as a result of the on going conflict over Kashmir .

In 1998, India conducted nuclear tests, which inevitably lead Pakistan to conduct their own nuclear tests . When the NPT was signed in 1965, Pakistan was not a nuclear equipped country, so it never signed it . Over the years, China has helped Pakistan build up its program. The reason for this is that China and India have had a long-standing border dispute. Many people feel that China will use India's nuclear testing as a reason to continues providing Pakistan with nuclear technology . That is why the U.S. put sanctions on Pakistan. The U.S.

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 3292
Approximate Pages = 13 (250 words per page double spaced)