Revision summary
The NPT and NSG made civilian nuclear trade safer and limited new weapon states. DPRK left the treaty and tested nuclear devices. Iran’s deal stalled; enrichment remains a proliferation file. India’s NSG waiver shows the regime can bend for a non-NPT state with safeguards. AUKUS is nuclear propulsion for conventionally armed submarines, not a warhead transfer, but it still strains export norms.
Model answer
Introduction
The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty promised a freeze on new weapon states. The record is mixed: fewer bombs than a free-for-all, yet Iran, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, and new naval-nuclear deals still test the system.
Body
What the regime did
- The NPT split the world into recognised weapon states and the rest, with IAEA safeguards on civilian fuel.
- The Nuclear Suppliers Group tightened export of sensitive technology after 1974.
- Test bans, UN sanctions, and the JCPOA with Iran showed that diplomacy can freeze a programme for a time.
Why the challenge remains
- DPRK walked out, tested devices, and showed that a determined state can still build a bomb.
- Iran’s JCPOA stalled; enrichment capacity remains a live proliferation risk even without a declared weapon.
- Three NPT outsiders — India, Pakistan, Israel — sit outside the treaty, which critics call a fairness hole even after India’s 2008 NSG waiver.
- AUKUS is a pact for nuclear-powered, conventionally armed submarines for Australia. The careful point is naval nuclear propulsion and fuel, not a transfer of warheads; even so, some states argue it stretches NPT and NSG practice.
- The statement is therefore true in direction: proliferation is contained, not closed.
Flow diagram
Conclusion
NPT and NSG reduced casual spread but did not end determined programmes. DPRK and Iran show the gap; AUKUS raises a propulsion-rules debate, not a new bomb sale. International security still lives with nuclear risk.
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Next question in the 2025 paper (Q10). View answer →
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Does AUKUS give Australia nuclear weapons?
No. It supports nuclear-powered submarines with conventional arms. The dispute is safeguards and fuel, not warheads.
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Has the NPT failed completely?
No. Most states never built bombs. Failure is partial: DPRK, Iran’s file, and outsiders to the treaty.
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