According to a report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), nuclear powers currently possess about 12,187 nuclear warheads, of which about 9,745 warheads are in reserve and can be used when necessary.
This number is slightly lower than the previous year. Since the end of the Cold War, old warheads have often been dismantled at a faster rate than the deployment of new warheads, causing the total number of nuclear weapons in the world to generally decrease.
However, SIPRI Director Karim Haggag said that what is more worrying is the increasing level of nuclear risk. "The more worrying thing is that although the number of nuclear weapons is decreasing, the level of nuclear danger and risk is increasing," Mr. Haggag said.
SIPRI forecasts that the global trend of reducing nuclear arsenals is likely to reverse in the coming years as the dismantling rate of old warheads slows down, while the deployment of new types of nuclear weapons is being accelerated.
Some other worrying signs are the weakening of strategic weapons control mechanisms, including international agreements, along with increasingly fierce competition among nuclear powers.
Another notable trend is that many countries are taking nuclear warheads out of storage to install on vehicles capable of launching nuclear weapons.
“That means that more and more nuclear weapons are being deployed in reality” - Mr. Haggag said.
The US and Russia currently hold about 83% of the global nuclear arsenal, with each country possessing more than 5,000 warheads.
SIPRI assesses China as the country that is expanding its nuclear arsenal at the fastest pace today. SIPRI estimates that China currently possesses about 620 nuclear warheads.
In Europe, France and the UK maintain nuclear arsenals at 290 and 225 warheads respectively. India has slightly expanded its nuclear arsenal to about 190 warheads while Pakistan still maintains about 170 warheads, but continues to accumulate fissile material, suggesting that its nuclear arsenal may continue to increase in the next decade.
According to SIPRI, North Korea is also pursuing its declared goal of exponentially expanding its nuclear arsenal. The research institute estimates that Pyongyang currently possesses about 60 nuclear warheads.
