Israeli Nuclear Criss

Although to this day, Israel has neither denied or admitted to possessing nuclear bombs, Dr. Avner Cohen, author of Israel and the Bomb, states that the existence of an Israeli bomb has been "the world's worst kept secret since about 1970." Israel is estimated to have over 100 nuclear weapons, making it potentially one of the largest nuclear powers, possibly ahead of Britain and France. Israel’s policy of opacity regarding the subject and their refusal to join the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which in turn prevents the IAEA to monitor and impose safeguards on Israel’s nuclear program, is widely seen as a threat to international security, obviously with great concern attached to the already unstable Middle East. With tensions rising, increasing rates of globalization and advancing technology, it certainly appears that the modern-day international community can not afford to remain ignorant on the details of Israel’s capabilities to possess substantial weapons of mass destruction.

Israel’s nuclear program has been a work in progress literally since the founding of the country in 1948. With early assistance from France and the recent discovery of British support, the effects of globalization to the success of Israel’s nuclear pursuits are undeniable. Nuclear research cooperation between Israel and France dates back to the 1950’s when France helped Israel secretly construct a 24 MWt reactor, outside of IAEA regulations, in Dimona, part of the Negev Desert. Not until 2005 did the world learn that Britain was apart of Israel’s early nuclear projects. In a publicly released report by BBC, it was announced that papers in the British National Archive showed that Britain had secretly sold Israel 20 tons of heavy water, a vital ingredient for plutonium production. These recent findings add to the secrecy of the history and present status of Israel’s nuclear program.

The United States first became aware of the existence of Dimona in 1958 but did not discover it was a nuclear complex until 2 years later. Israel claimed that the plant was used for peaceful nuclear research. During the next two decades, the CIA failed to obtain knowledge of the exact details of Israel’s nuclear program. However, by the mid-1960’s the CIA concluded

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