This essay is about the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty.

The story of the 1963 nuclear test ban treaty has its origins in the last year of World War II. On July 16, 1945, the United States for the first time exploded an atomic bomb, at Alamagordo, New Mexico. Later, on August 6 and 9, the United States dropped the only atomic bombs ever used in wartime--on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The end of the war came very shortly thereafter, but so also did the realization that …

…and the Chinese were soon to become the fifth nuclear power by exploding an atomic bomb in October, 1964. On the other hand, more than a hundred other nations subsequently added their pledges to those of the United States, Great Britain, and the Soviet Union. A major first step had been taken toward creating a more peaceful world, as the Partial Test Ban Treaty demonstrated that confrontation need not be the prevailing characteristic of East-West relations.