xxxii, 502, [2] pages. Footnotes. Glossary. Abbreviations, acronyms and

xxxii, 502, [2] pages. Footnotes. Glossary. Abbreviations, acronyms and conventions. Sources. Tables. Figures. Index. Stamp of institution and date in ink on verso. Plutonium and highly enriched uranium (HEU) are the basic materials used in nuclear weapons. Plutonium also plays an important part in the generation of nuclear electricity. Knowing how much plutonium and HEU exists, where and in which form is vital for international security and nuclear commerce. For the first time, this book provides a rigorous and comprehensive assessment of the amounts of plutonium and HEU in military and civilian programs, in nuclear and non-nuclear weapon states, and in countries seeking to acquire nuclear weapons. The capabilities that exist for producing these materials around the world are examined in depth. Containing much new information, this book is indispensable to all those concerned with three great contemporary issues in international nuclear relations: arms reductions in the United States and the former Soviet Union, nuclear proliferation, and the roles of plutonium and enriched uranium in the nuclear fuel-cycle. Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) is an international institute based in Sweden. SIPRI provides data, analysis and recommendations, based on open sources, to policymakers, researchers, media and the interested public. In 1964, Prime Minister of Sweden Tage Erlander put forward the idea of establishing a peace research institute to commemorate Sweden's 150 years of unbroken peace. A Swedish Royal Commission chaired by Alva Myrdal proposed in its 1966 report to establish the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, SIPRI. The Commission recommended that research be concentrated on armaments, their limitation and reduction, and arms control. SIPRI has built its reputation on competence, professional skills, and the collection of hard data and precise facts, rendering accessible impartial information on weapon developments, arms transfers and production, military expenditure, as well as on arms limitations, reductions and disarmament.