Contents: Preface. 1. International relations and India's geopolitical environment. 2. The western narrative western nuclear theology. 3. The Indian narrative. 4. Pure strategy and technology. 5. The Indian arsenal. 6. The command and control system. 7. The Indian nuclear strategy and the international environment. Index.

"This topical and important book comes at a time when India's position on the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) has aroused controversy in international fora, when the international order and its attendant security compulsions are undergoing significant changes, and when the world is taking rapid technological strides.

"Perhaps the first effort to articulate a coherent nuclear strategy for India, the book begins by providing a framework that rests on a theory of international relations in which the use of force is postulated. Admiral Menon then discusses the experience of western countries in acquiring tactical nuclear weapons and Indian criticisms of western nuclear doctrines. This is followed by a discussion of India's journey to acquiring nuclear weapons which presents, for the first time, a coordinated analysis of the roles played by the military, the scientific establishment and diplomats combined with the technological and economic dimensions."