facilities such as nuclear power plants. Chinese academics generally believe that it is highly unlikely that the first two types of nuclear terrorist activities would occur in China. This is because China possesses a small number of nuclear weapons that are managed and controlled tightly. In addition, the country’s storage of nuclear materials is very strictly managed. However, China’s nuclear facilities could come under attack. Terrorists are most likely to launch dirty bombs or directly release radioactive materials. Because China has a huge amount of radioactive material that is widely distributed, as well as some material that is outside government control, it could fall into the hands of terrorists.41 This differs from the U.S. approach of paying extra attention to preventing terrorists from acquiring nuclear weapons or fissile materials. Some Chinese scholars point out that China’s nuclear weapons and fissile materials actually face threats from internal enemies and increasingly active East Turkestan terrorist forces, and thus there is a need to update the official threat assessment to reflect these risks.42 The harm that would be caused by terrorists acquiring nuclear weapons or manufacturing crude nuclear devices should not be underestimated. In terms of specific nuclear security practices, China emphasizes the concept of keeping things tight on the inside but loose on the outside—that is, the government maintains tight internal control but appears relaxed to outside observers. The country pays a great deal of attention to the management of nuclear materials and nuclear facilities, which is extremely strict. Officials in Beijing have also adopted plenty of measures to strengthen the protection, accounting, and control of tangible assets, as well as new technological developments, and they have adhered to the slogan of “not one gram or piece lost” for more than the past fifty years.43 In recent years, China’s nuclear security culture has also gradually grown and developed. However, to prevent terrorists from taking advantage of loopholes and obtaining nuclear security-related information, as well as to avoid unnecessary social panic, China has paid greater attention to publicity concerning nuclear security. Unlike the Western approach, China has seldom engaged in major publicity efforts, or high-profile advocacy, on this issue.
THE FUTURE OF NUCLEAR PROLIFERATION THE PROSPECTS FOR PROLIFERATION Chinese academics hold various views on the prospects for nuclear proliferation. Most of them are rather pessimistic. They believe, as Li Shaojun writes, that “as the largest nuclear weapon state [the United States] is unwilling to give up the military option that is dependent on nuclear weapons, the nuclear non-proliferation regime cannot be pushed
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UNDERSTANDING CHINESE NUCLEAR THINKING