The first and only African country to own a nuclear weapon

Africa is known for many unique features, but ownership of weapons that can cause massive destruction is often linked to Western countries. To understand this issue, it is important to explain what weapons of mass destruction are. These are weapons created to cause widespread loss of life or serious damage to infrastructure.

Weapons of mass destruction include chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear weapons. These weapons are mostly associated with developed countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Russia, and France. Other countries like China and North Korea are also known to possess them.

When governments consider developing nuclear weapons, they must weigh political pressure, public opinion, and the interests of groups like scientists and the defence industry. The personal ambitions of political leaders can also play a role. However, many countries avoid pursuing nuclear weapons due to the risk of international isolation, as more nations have committed to rejecting them.

For this reason, it may surprise many people to learn that an African country once had nuclear weapons. South Africa is the only country on the continent known to have developed a nuclear weapons programme. During the apartheid period, the country secretly built several nuclear weapons, making it the first and only African nation to do so.

What makes South Africa’s situation unique is that it later chose to dismantle its nuclear weapons on its own. After apartheid ended, the country took steps to destroy its nuclear arsenal and commit to nuclear disarmament. In February 2019, South Africa signed and ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, confirming its commitment to a world without nuclear weapons.

South Africa remains the only country in the world to have developed nuclear weapons and later voluntarily destroyed them, setting a rare example in global disarmament history…CONTINUE MORE READING>>>