In 1964 China became the fifth nation to develop and test a nuclear bomb.
The first nation to create and test a nuclear bomb was the United States in July 1945 with a 20kt device named “Trinity” followed by Russia with “RDS-1” in Aug/Sep 1949. The United Kingdom tested their first nuclear bomb on the 3rd of August 1952 with “Hurricane” a 25 kiloton device tested off Western Australia. On the 13th of February 1960 France tested their 70kt “Gerboise bleue" becoming the fourth and on the 16th of October 1964 China became the fifth with their 22 kiloton device. These five nations are the only permanent members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) which is a branch of the United Nations and was founded with the UN in 1946.
After World War II these nations were considered the main victors and they maintained the most powerful military forces in the world (except France who were over taken by Japan in 2012). On the 1st of July 1968 the United Nations set up the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons Treaty to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons. The treaty came into effect on the 5th of March 1970 and called for all nations that signed to only use nuclear power for peaceful means such as the production of power (excluding the 5 permanent members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC)). 190 countries have signed the treaty but in 2003 North Korea withdrew its participation. India, Pakistan and North Korea are the only countries to have openly tested their nuclear weapons rejecting the Treaty.
In the late 1960’s India and Nuclear armed China had many border disputes and, fearing war, India spent many years developing their own nuclear armaments. On this day in 1974 India tested their first nuclear bomb nicknamed “Smiling Buddha” (this being the traditional anniversary of the Buddha’s enlightenment) which was believed to be an 8 kiloton device.
India’s nuclear programme started in 1944 and continued after India gained independence from the United Kingdom on the 26th of January 1950. In 1957 India set up The Atomic Energy Establishment in Trombay and in 1964 India began plans for a nuclear power reactor called Rajasthan 1. In 1962 the Sino-Indian border conflict progressed to war and when China became the fifth nation to create nuclear weapons in 1967, India increased its own nuclear weapons program and on the 18th of May 1974 India became the sixth nation to develop nuclear weapons. When India aided Bangladesh against Pakistan during the Indo-Pakistan War (3 - 16th of December 1971) Pakistan also began developing Nuclear weapons on the 20th of January 1972 and on the 28th of May 1990 they had developed their own nuclear weapon.
