Understanding Pakistan's nuclear behaviour (1950s-2010) : assessing the state motivation and its international ramifications (a three models approach)

The aim of this study is to understand the motivation behind Pakistan’s nuclear behaviour and its ramifications for the global non-proliferation system. Pakistan is an extremely important case because of its status as a non-signatory state to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and a country from which proliferation has occurred (to Iran, North Korea and Libya). The central interest in this study is the extent to which Pakistan’s security interests and its nuclear behaviour were factored into the global non-proliferation regime and why that regime failed to constrain Pakistan’s nuclear behaviour so that it first developed nuclear weapons and then proliferated them to states which are a matter of concern to the international community. The thesis seeks to explain Pakistan’s nuclear behaviour through the prism of regime theory and a three-models approach (neo-realism, neo-liberalism and constructivism). The thesis also provides an in-depth analytical account of whether or how far international institutions and regimes can succeed in influencing the behaviour of states through cooperation, a theme suggested by regime theory. The three schools of thought offer useful arguments to help explain why it was that Pakistan did not choose to join the non-proliferation regime and the constraints which international institutions face with regard to non-signatory states. Drawing lessons from the case of Pakistan, the thesis suggests ways in which global non-proliferation institutions might be strengthened in the future, which would also help in linking Pakistan more firmly to the non-proliferation regime. These changes would also help to align other non-NPT states, such as India and Israel, with the non-proliferation regime and offer a firmer challenge to other states to change their conduct – states such as North Korea and Iran, which remain a cause of concern to the international community.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo