The United Kingdom's "Atoms for Peace" Cooperation Within the Commonwealth and the Sphere of British Influence

2018 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 16K03519
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: International relations
• Research Institution: Hiroshima University
• Principal Investigator: Tomotsugu Shinsuke 広島大学, 平和センター, 准教授 (90622019)
• Research Collaborator: Tsuchiya Yuka ; Higuchi Toshihiro ; Sato Shohei
• Project Period (FY): 2016-04-01 – 2019-03-31
• Keywords: 原子力平和利用 / コモンウェルス / イギリス外交

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This study showed that the United Kingdom promoted with the international cooperation in the field of nuclear energy, in order to maintain its ties to the Commonwealth and to the countries in the sphere of British influence. This study also clarified the contents of the Commonwealth Prime Minister Conference, whose main subject was nuclear energy, annd the Conference of the Commonwealth Atomic Scientists, which convened the leading scientists from the Commonwealth countries. The U.K. considered the "Northern Tier" consisting of Turkey, Iraq, Iran, and Pakistan, geographically important. This study demonstrated the significance of the Baghdad Pact Nuclear Center, which was designed for the "Northern Tier", by explaining the process of the establishment of the center. These findings will be presented at the 15th International Conference of History of Science in East Asia held in August 2019. The researcher of this study is preparing an article for an academic journal or a book chapter.

Free Research Field

国際関係史

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本研究は原子力利用の国際的拡散の源流を探った。従来の研究は「平和のための原子力」キャンペーンを展開したアメリカに多くの注意を払ってきたが、本研究は原子力利用の国際的な拡散の歴史を、より複線的なものとして捉え、イギリスの役割を明らかにした。これにより、同国が帝国内のネットワークをどう生かそうとしてきたのか、その一端が明らかとなり、中東、南アジアにおける核拡散の原点についても理解を深めることが出来る。