Currently, there is no evidence of Taiwan possessing any chemical, biological, or nuclear weapons. However, nuclear weapons from the United States were deployed to Taiwan during a period of heightened regional tensions with China beginning with the First Taiwan Strait Crisis and ending in the 1970s.
Nuclear weapons are still here—and they're still an existential risk. Nine countries possess nuclear weapons: the United States, Russia, France, China, the United Kingdom, Pakistan, India, Israel, and North Korea. In total, the global nuclear stockpile is close to 13,000 weapons.
This means that Taiwan will remain without nuclear power, although the government has not ruled out reintroducing it. Taiwan's last operational nuclear reactor – unit 2 at the Maanshan NPP in Pingtung County – was shut down after its operating licence expired in May.
Which two countries hold almost 90% of all nuclear weapons?
Nuclear-armed states around the world
Around 2,100 of the deployed warheads were kept in a state of high operational alert on ballistic missiles. Mostly all of these warheads belonged to Russia or the USA. Both these countries together possess around 90 per cent of all nuclear weapons, the report noted.
Taiwan is set to shut down its last operational nuclear power plant, which will boost its dependence on imported fossil fuels, already the island's largest source of energy. Reliance on energy imports would expose Taiwan to greater risk of widespread blackouts in case of a future blockade by China.
Nuclear weapons in Taiwan would spark a 'global crisis'
Why don't the US give Taiwan nukes?
The development of nuclear weapons by Taiwan has been a contentious issue, as it had been triggered by the People's Republic of China first nuclear test in 1964. The United States, hoping to avoid escalating tensions in the Taiwan Strait, has continually opposed arming Taiwan with nuclear weapons after 1979.
The French justified their decision to provide Israel a nuclear reactor by claiming it was not without precedent. In September 1955 Canada publicly announced that it would help the Indian government build a heavy-water research reactor, the CIRUS reactor, for "peaceful purposes".
What is the strongest country with nuclear weapons?
Russia has the most confirmed nuclear weapons, with over 5,500 nuclear warheads. The United States follows behind with 5,044 nuclear weapons, hosted in the US and 5 other nations: Turkey, Italy, Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands.
As of 2012, countries such as Australia, Austria, Denmark, Estonia, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Portugal, Israel, Serbia, Malaysia, and Norway have no nuclear power reactors and remain opposed to nuclear power.
Five countries account for more than two-thirds of the world's total nuclear electricity generation capacity. The United States has the most capacity, followed by France, China, Russia, and South Korea, based on International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) data as of June 2025.
Although Germany has the technical capability to produce weapons of mass destruction (WMD), since World War II it has refrained from producing those weapons. However, Germany participates in the NATO nuclear weapons sharing arrangements and trains for delivering United States nuclear weapons.
How India created its nuclear arsenal. In the late 1950s, India established its nuclear program with assistance from the U.S. and Canada, who provided nuclear reactors and nuclear fuel.
The program ended in 1975, upon Italy's accession to the Non-Proliferation Treaty. Currently, Italy does not produce or possess nuclear weapons, but takes part in the NATO nuclear sharing program, hosting B61 nuclear bombs at the Aviano and Ghedi Air Bases.
What is the safest country in the world in a nuclear war?
Countries that would see no population loss include Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay, Costa Rica, Panama, Haiti, Australia, Iceland and Oman, according to the study.
France's nuclear weapons stockpile has remained stable over the past decade and contains approximately 290 warheads for delivery by ballistic missile submarines and aircraft. Nearly all of France's stockpiled warheads are deployed or operationally available for deployment on short notice.
According to a 2001 Department of Defense report, China has supplied Pakistan with nuclear materials and has provided critical technical assistance in the construction of Pakistan's nuclear weapons development facilities, in violation of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, of which China is a signatory.
Does Australia Have or Want Nuclear Weapons? Australia does not possess any nuclear weapons and is committed to the goal of a world without nuclear weapons. Australia's core obligations as a non-nuclear-weapon state are set out in the NPT.
France's motivation was initially commercial — to sell Israel a reactor — but their shared experience with Nazism during the Second World War and of confronting Arab nationalists, of both being defeated during the 1956 Suez crisis, and of both being frozen out of Anglo-American nuclear efforts predisposed them to a ...
Contamination with radioactive caesium, with a half-life of up to around 30 years, remains in the environment for a long time. It is principally responsible for the increased radiation levels still present in the area around Fukushima.
Why does France have so many nuclear power plants?
Nuclear power was introduced in large quantities in France following the 1973 oil crisis according to the Messmer plan named for then prime minister Pierre Messmer. This was based on projections that large amounts of electric power would be required.
