In his popular book “Perpetual Peace; A Philosophical Sketch,” Kant, a prominent German political philosopher of the late 18th century, outlines possible ways to achieve his conception of perpetual peace. To this end, he prescribed in his book six preliminary articles describing the steps to be taken immediately and three definitive articles (plus one secret article) describing the steps to be established in the future by working towards them, in order to discourage war/establish peace. If Kant were to present his point of view on the acquisition of nuclear arsenals and the policy of nuclear deterrence adopted by many countries today, he would most likely criticize and condemn the idea. This essay outlines several supporting pieces of evidence from Kant's writings to substantiate Kant's statement of disapproval of nuclear weapons and nuclear deterrence and suggest Kant's definitive conclusion on this discourse. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Nuclear weapons are weapons of mass destruction that use the process of nuclear fusion, fission, or both to release energy explosively causing an immeasurable amount of destruction. In history, this terrible method of warfare was only used twice in World War II by the United States against Japan and the fatal consequences of this exist to this day. Since then the strategy of nuclear deterrence has been used. According to Britannica, deterrence is the military strategy whereby a power effectively uses the threat of retaliation to prevent an attack by an opposing power. Countries that possess nuclear weapons use deterrence theory to explain their aim to acquire and maintain nuclear arsenals. Whatever the reason, nuclear weapons still pose a direct threat to world peace. Kant believes that the state of nature is not a state of peace but a state of continuous war, but this does not justify the existence of war. Kant believes that as moral progress continues, people will eventually come to hate war and move towards peace. Since war hinders the ultimate goal of establishing perpetual peace, the use of nuclear weapons in war can also be considered an obstacle to achieving peace. According to the first preliminary article for perpetual peace between states, Kant states that “no peace treaty will be considered valid in which there is a matter tacitly reserved for a future war (Kant).” He believes that any such treaty is simply the delay of hostility and not the achievement of perpetual peace. Treaties such as the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons have been signed by many countries in order to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy, prevent the spread and use of nuclear weapons, and ultimately lead to nuclear disarmament. If these treaties did not come into force immediately, Kant would deem them invalid. For example, the Limited Test Ban Treaty signed in August 1963 banning nuclear weapons tests in the atmosphere, space, under water, and any other environment if the explosions cause radioactive debris to be present outside the territory of a responsible state. Such treaties would be considered null and void by Kant as they do not ensure the complete elimination of the possibility of future war. The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) which does not completely allow countries to possess nuclear weapons could be considered valid according to Kant as it eliminates a source of war, thus reducing the possibility of afuture war. Therefore, the possession of nuclear weapons, even when states agree not to use them, does not completely eliminate the possibility that they will not use them in the future. According to the third preliminary article for perpetual peace between states, Kant believes that the abolition of standing armies as soon as possible is a necessary step to take to perpetuate peace (Kant). He believes that the very existence of standing armies causes aggression and threat of war to others. In today's world the possession of nuclear weapons can be called a standing army as it serves a similar purpose. The entire theory of nuclear deterrence itself is based on this basis, that is, on a weapon ready for war. Most countries that possess nuclear weapons today say they obtained them only for defensive purposes. But according to Kant this would serve the purpose of a standing army and therefore, a probable cause of future war. Furthermore, Kant would suggest that the amount of finance used for the acquisition and maintenance of nuclear power becomes a burden on the state that the country would ultimately like to get rid of by using it. The use of nuclear weapons would also mean being ready to sacrifice one's own people if war broke out and since the idea is hardly compatible with the rights of humanity (according to Kant), the goal of achieving perpetual peace by eliminating war and by progressing humanity's rights, they would be compromised again. The fourth preliminary article for perpetual peace between states states that national debts cannot be contracted with a view to external friction of the states (Kant). Again, Kant indirectly proposed that countries should not allow war financing to become easy. He suggests that when countries accept financial aid/debt from other countries for war purposes, it creates dangerous monetary power in a country. This ease of waging war, together with the inclination to do so on the part of rulers – an inclination that seems innate in human nature – is therefore a great obstacle to perpetual peace (Kant). Today, countries trade nuclear weapons with each other and even take out debts with other countries to finance their nuclear programs. Kant disapproves of such trade because it hinders the achievement of perpetual peace and can become a possible cause of war. Furthermore, the sixth and final preliminary article for perpetual peace between states also supports the claim that Kant would criticize or even condemn the act of possessing nuclear weapons or nuclear deterrence. In this article Kant states that no state can, during war, allow such acts of hostility as to make mutual trust impossible in the subsequent peace. Although Kant mentioned other evil acts here such as sending spies and poisoners, the act of using a nuclear weapon on another country would have a similar effect. For example, since the United States used nuclear weapons against Japan in World War II, relations between the two countries have not been properly established. This act has created hostility between the countries for years. Furthermore, countries that have not agreed to sign any treaty regarding the non-use of nuclear weapons become a cause of hostility for other states and can become a possible cause of war. Although most of Kant's writings suggest that he totally opposes war and believes that peace will only be achieved when all possibilities of war end, he agrees that the state of nature is a state of constant war. Through war, nature allowed man to discover the world and become what he is. War has accustomed man to live under the laws, because war requires men to unite politically with others. Kant.