It is a typical American utopian belief that peace can be achieved in this world through force of law. With this belief, America has embarked on many failed experiments to bring a utopian peace to society on a national and global scale. Prohibition in the 1920s, the United Nations, even America’s desire to spread democracy in the Middle East were all products of this thinking. These policies all met with disastrous results, often doing the exact opposite of what was intended. Yet even America itself is called an experiment, so it’s no wonder then that the United States continues to try.

There is another experiment the U.S. has tried that has received less criticism and attention than the others, though it has far greater implications. This is the attempt to promote peace and prosperity in the world by supporting civilian nuclear operations. The results of this plan have been similar to those of the previously listed experiments, showing that man is incapable of bringing peace to this world.

Peaceful nuclear cooperation was an idea proposed by America with the belief that an international atomic agency could devise methods to allocate nuclear material and technology to serve the peaceful pursuits of mankind. Experts in nuclear technology would be employed not to make bombs, but to apply their knowledge to agriculture, medicine and other peaceful purposes.

The grand plan was announced to the world by U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower in a speech to the UN General Assembly in December 1953. The speech was dubbed “Atoms for Peace.” In it, President Eisenhower proposed (emphasis mine):

The governments principally involved, to the extent permitted by elementary prudence, should begin now and continue to make joint contributions from their stockpiles of normal uranium and fissionable materials to an international atomic energy agency …. The United States is prepared to undertake these explorations in good faith.

So what has been the result? Has “Atoms for Peace” served the peaceful pursuits of mankind?

Nations have made more than 2,000 bilateral nuclear civilian cooperation agreements (ncas) promising to exchange nuclear materials and technology for peaceful purposes. The results of these ncas, as studied by Matthew Fuhrmann, assistant professor of Political Science at the University of South Carolina, shouldn’t surprise any longtime reader of the Trumpet.

It turns out one of the biggest catalysts for the proliferation of nuclear weapons was “Atoms for Peace.”

According to Fuhrmann’s statistical analysis published in International Security, “Participation in at least one nuclear cooperation agreement increases the likelihood of beginning a nuclear weapons program by 500 percent” (Summer 2009). Even though the number of nations embarking on nuclear weapons programs is small, and the number to actually acquire the bomb smaller, the statistical correlation is still there.

Fuhrmann’s studies also revealed that 80 percent of the countries that began weapons programs did so after receiving civilian aid. The four countries that started their program without assistance—France, the Soviet Union, Britain and the U.S.—all did so in the 1940s and early ’50s, before nuclear cooperation was an option.

This means every country that started a nuclear weapons program since America’s “Atoms for Peace” program launched did so with civilian aid. Furhmann’s study demonstrates that civilian nuclear aid has been a necessary condition for launching a nuclear weapons program.

The fact is, all the technology and materials linked to civilian use can be applied to a nuclear weapons program. Uranium and plutonium enrichment facilities can produce fuel to power reactors or produce material for nuclear weapons.

Civilian assistance increases a nation’s knowledge in nuclear matters and reduces the costs for a weapons program. The bottom line is that all atomic assistance—from training nuclear scientists to supplying reactors—increases the likelihood that a nation will start a weapons program.

The good-faith policy backfired completely! A quick look at a few examples proves the point.

South Africa received U.S. assistance in its peaceful nuclear program beginning in July 1957. The U.S. supplied South Africa with highly enriched uranium, aided in its construction of a nuclear research reactor and trained its nuclear scientists. The cooperation created an atomic corporation that grew to have considerable influence in South African politics. The corporation, led by A.J. Roux, convinced Prime Minister John Vorster to construct a uranium enrichment plant in 1968, and then later lobbied to start a nuclear weapons program. In the ’70s, Vorster authorized the start of a weapons program after recognizing the civilian nuclear infrastructure allowed for the quick and successful development of weapons.

South Africa’s case is interesting because its program developed when there were no serious threats to its security.

It is believed by many that nuclear weapons spread when there is a perceived need for them rather than when countries have the capacity to build them. South Africa proves that idea wrong.

If a nation is given the ability to start a weapons program, it will be more likely to start one. When the ability is combined with serious security threats, the likelihood increases.

China, India, Israel, Pakistan and North Korea were all recipients of peaceful nuclear cooperation in the late 1950s and the ’60s. Research reactors, uranium, heavy water and the training of scientists were all a part of the cooperation that led to these nations starting weapons programs.

Samar Mubarakmand, who headed the team of scientists responsible for Pakistan’s 1998 nuclear tests, said nations could not build bombs “unless there is a human resources available … which understands [nuclear-related] work to such an extent that it is able to develop and raise this program from zero to 100 percent all by itself” (ibid.).

Mubarakmand believed that Libya wasn’t able to develop the bomb because it lacked the knowledge base Pakistan received through peaceful nuclear cooperation. Libya tried to build its knowledge base using the black market from 1970 to 2003, but was never able to develop the bomb.

Now Iran is well on its way to acquiring the nuclear bomb thanks to “peaceful” nuclear cooperation from such countries as South Africa, North Korea, Pakistan and Russia, all under the UN International Atomic Energy Agency’s (iaea’s) watch.

When Iran procures the bomb, only the naive will be shocked, and if the pattern holds, the blame won’t go to the “Atoms for Peace” idea where it belongs. Instead of looking to the supply side as the problem, many analysts will most likely continue to focus on the demand side, blaming the West and Israel for threatening Iran’s security.

During Eisenhower’s speech to the UN, he described the destruction a war fought with atomic bombs would cause, destroying all civilization. He said,

Surely no sane member of the human race could discover victory in such desolation. … Occasional pages of history do record the faces of the “great destroyers,” but the whole book of history reveals mankind’s never-ending quest for peace and mankind’s God-given capacity to build.

Eisenhower’s premise of Atoms for Peace, and therefore the iaea’s as well, was the belief that mankind can regulate itself peacefully and not degenerate to the point of destroying itself.

But this is a false hope! The Bible states, “Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man in whom there is no help” (Psalm 146:3).

There is no help for this world from the U.S. and the UN, which have not only failed to prevent nuclear proliferation but have actually facilitated it through mistaken policies!

Since the “Atoms for Peace” speech, the number of nations with nuclear weapons has more than doubled. The nuclear technology and knowledge that was supposed to be used for peace has the potential for war instead.

Peaceful nuclear cooperation has gone the way of all other attempts by man to regulate himself. It has accomplished the exact opposite and driven mankind away from peace!

Even the UN itself was based on a failed attempt for world peace. It was modeled after the League of Nations, another grand plan, created by American President Woodrow Wilson, which failed completely to stop Nazi and Japanese aggression. This led to its collapse and World War ii, the most devastating war to this point and the only one in which the atomic bomb has been used.

This time, the U.S. and the iaea’s failure will lead to an even more devastating war in which nuclear weapons will be used almost to the point of killing all mankind!

Though America has often taken the lead in such endeavors, all man’s governments have failed in their quests for peace. The goal of peace is noble, but man just can’t achieve it through his own efforts. In Matthew 24:21-22, Bible prophecy shows that trusting in man will lead to nuclear devastation that would wipe out all mankind if Jesus Christ didn’t stop it! That will be the culmination of man’s attempts to bring peace to this world.

Proponents of peaceful nuclear cooperation point to Germany and Japan as examples of success for the program. Yet Bible prophecy tells us that Germany will use nuclear weapons, and the likelihood that Japan will also procure nuclear weapons is high. Request our free booklets Germany and the Holy Roman Empire and Russia and China in Prophecy for a detailed explanation of these prophecies.

Man’s rule over himself has been one long failed experiment! Nuclear proliferation shows the direction the world is going—toward more destructive war.

What can we do to ensure our safety in this future tribulation? The Bible says that “whosoever puts his trust in the Lord shall be safe” (Proverbs 29:25). Instead of putting our trust in man we must put our trust in God. This can only happen when we truly believe that man can’t solve his problems and that only God can.

The American belief that utopia can be achieved through force of law is correct. However, it will not come through man, but through Jesus Christ and His saints. That is man’s only true hope. To learn more about that hope, read our article “Jesus Christ Returns!”