UN: Risk of nuclear weapons use at all-time high

The threat of a "nuclear weapon detonation event," be it accidental or deliberate, is now the highest it's been since the end of the Cold War, 26 years ago, a UN agency has warned, saying the risk is rising as relations between nuclear powers deteriorate.

With over 15,000 nuclear weapons possessed by nine states, the world now appears "full of potential for catastrophe," warns a comprehensive study from the UN Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR).

"The threat of a nuclear weapon detonation event in 2017 is arguably at its highest in the 26 years since the collapse of the Soviet Union," said the research paper composed by several reputed scholars and disarmament experts.

Nuclear deterrence was, and still is, the backbone of the military strategies of many world powers. Overall, nine states - the US, Russia, China, the UK, France, India,...