Peace Through Arsenal: A Hopeless Hope

The most disadvantageous peace is better than the most just war.

- P M GURUBASAVRAJ AND NAVNEET SHARMA

—Desiderius Erasmus However, the most popular notion of peace is the absence of violence or war. This is the primary dictionary definition, which leads to a perspective: since there cannot be a universal agreement to a universal notion of peace, 'others' can be deterred only from waging war, and this deterrence can be achieved only if 'we' become more powerful than they. We must have a huge arsenal of weapons that can instill fear in the 'other'. The understanding that the arsenal of weapons alone can bring in and maintain peace is one that leads to 9/11 and 26/11 attacks, suggesting that these, in the long run, would either establish peace or at least deter the 'other'.

The world's vast arsenal of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMDs) paints a troubling picture of a planet more prepared for conflict than for peace. This reality is deeply connected to the legacy of the 9/11 attacks and the simultaneous rise of nationalist violence across the globe, creating a self-perpetuating cycle of fear, militarization, and insecurity. Updated data from the Federation of American Scientists (FAS) in June 2025 reveals that nine countries together hold approximately 12,241 nuclear warheads. Of these, nearly 9,614 are maintained in active military stockpiles, ready to be deployed by missiles, submarines, ships, and aircraft. The overwhelming majority of this destructive capability rests with just two nations—Russia and the United States—who collectively control about 87 percent of the total inventory and 83 percent of the stockpiled warheads available for immediate military use. Other nuclear-armed states, including China, France, the United Kingdom, India, Pakistan, Israel, and North Korea, maintain far smaller but still significant stockpiles, with India's arsenal increasing from 172 warheads in 2024 to 180 in 2025, reflecting a steady modernization of its deterrent force.