Towards global no-first use

Why the maturation of India's strategic deterrent calls for a new approach to nuclear policy

While Modi government’s claims that India’s nuclear ballistic missile submarine (SSBN) carried out a deterrence patrol are exaggerated, it is a fact that we are getting closer to that milestone.

The capability to launch nuclear-armed missiles from nuclear-powered submarines is widely regarded as the greatest form of deterrence a country can possess. To be able to manufacture such submarines indigenously, equip them with missiles of the desired range, and fire them safely requires a very high degree of technological sophistication. To be able to operate one or more SSBNs requires the highest possible degree of professionalism all the way from the