There’s a good article accompanied by an eye-catching graphic on nuclear weapons at Sandboxx by Stavros Atlamazoglou. Here’s its kernel:
There are nine countries with a nuclear capability (U.S., Russia, U.K., France, China, India, Pakistan, Israel, and North Korea). Combined, these countries have approximately 13,500 nuclear warheads, including deployed, reserved, and stockpiled, with the majority of them distributed between the U.S. (~5,800) and Russia (~6,375).
However, of that number, approximately 3,825 are “deployed,†or placed in missiles or located on operational bases for immediate use. And only the traditional four countries (U.S., Russia, U.K., and France) maintain that readiness.
If you wonder why I repeat that the most important bilateral relationship in the world is between the U. S. and Russia, that should give you a hint. 12,000 nuclear weapons with almost 4,000 deployed remains desperately dangerous. I’m also concerned about the possibility of North Korea seeing its nuclear arsenal as a source of ready cash but that’s another subject.
Nuclear weapons have a shelf-life, and many of the Soviet nukes are past their expiration date. Still, I would not underestimate the Russian nuclear capability, and they are the only credible nuclear threat to the US.