This thesis is a history of American and British efforts to halt or retard the Pakistani nuclear weapons programme. It assesses US and UK non-proliferation policy towards Pakistan from the Indian nuclear test of May 1974 to the decline of anti-proliferation activity in 1979 and 1980. A broadly chronological analysis of key government and media sources from American and British archives highlights the development of non-proliferation policy and the factors that influenced anti-proliferation activity. Scrutiny of British-and not just American-involvement in Pakistan's nuclear programme permits an assessment of the existence of a 'non-proliferation special relationship' between Washington and London. This study demonstrates that successive British governments played a significant role in creating, shaping, and at times adversely affecting, non-proliferation activity on the sub-continent. Additionally, this thesis demonstrates that the UK frequently deprioritised non-proliferation concerns in favour of economic considerations, creating tension between London and Washington. Thus, it is shown that there was a close working relationship between the US and UK governments, but the relationship was riven with fissures. Alongside this examination of British policy, this study also examines American policy and attitudes, demonstrating that infighting and conflicts between strategic priorities impaired the effectiveness of American non-proliferation policy. Furthermore, this study offers a detailed examination of the cultural underpinnings of UK-US non-proliferation policy directed against Pakistan. It demonstrates that-contrary to popular and long-lasting media representations-the paradigm of an 'Islamic bomb' played no part in the creation and application of non-proliferation policy. This thesis makes it clear that in UK-US efforts to halt or retard Pakistani nuclear attainment, issues of credibility and global standing were far more significant than religious factors. Overall, this study examines a key moment in non-proliferation history and offers new findings on the Anglo-American relationship and the role of cultural factors in shaping foreign policy.

In recent years, Russia’s nuclear weapons program has been widely discussed among policymakers, think-tank analysts, and academics. Some argue that Russia pursues an increasingly assertive weapons policy and has lowered its threshold of using them in conflict. On the other end of the spectrum, there are scholars who argue that Russia’s nuclear weapons modernization is proceeding at a normal pace, and in extension, that there is little reason to be concerned about Moscow’s at times confrontational nuclear rhetoric. This thesis seeks to contribute to that debate by addressing to central questions: (1) How has Russia’s nuclear weapons policy evolved in the last two decades? (2) What explains the evolution in Russia’s nuclear weapons policy? Towards that end, the thesis first conducts a historical analysis, which provides a detailed overview of the changes and continuities that have characterized Russia’s nuclear weapons policy in the last 20 years. Building on this, the thesis then seeks to explore the underlying drivers and objectives of Russia’s nuclear weapons policy via the lenses of offensive realism, defensive realism, and constructivism. The thesis concludes that the evolution of Russia’s nuclear weapons policy is best explained by two factors: the attempt to uphold a secure- second-strike capability (defensive realism) and an attempt to defend its status as a major global power (constructivism).