Nuclear weapons: Countries that own them and how many warheads exist?

Published: Friday, January 22, 2021, 15:13 [IST]

United Nations, Jan 22: The first-ever treaty to ban nuclear weapons entered into force on Friday, hailed as a historic step to rid the world of its deadliest weapons but strongly opposed by the world''s nuclear-armed nations.

Nuclear weapons: Countries that own them and how many warheads exist? — Representational Image

The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons is now part of international law, culminating a decades-long campaign aimed at preventing a repetition of the US atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki at the end of World War II. But getting all nations to ratify the treaty requiring them to never own such weapons seems daunting, if not impossible, in the current global climate.

Eight sovereign states have publicly announced successful detonation of nuclear weapons. Five are considered to be nuclear-weapon states (NWS) under the terms of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). In order of acquisition of nuclear weapons these are the United States, Russia (the successor state to the Soviet Union), the United Kingdom, France, and China.

The following is a list of Countries that have admitted the possession of nuclear weapons or are presumed to possess them, the approximate number of warheads under their control.

Countries : Warheads