Synopsis Everybody talks of disarmament these days. But have we gone deep into the fact as to why is there an urgent need for disarmament. Let us first understand the world disarmament. Disarmament refers to the act of reducing, limiting, or abolishing weapons. The context of disarmament generally refers to a country's military or specific type of weaponry. The most common form of disarmament is abolishment of weapons of mass destruction, such as nuclear arms. Complete Disarmament refers to the removal of all weaponry, including conventional arms. Disarmament can be contrasted with arms control, which essentially refers to the act of controlling arms rather than eliminating them. A distinction can also be made between disarmament as a process (the process of eliminating weapons), and disarmament as an end state (the absence of weapons).

Nuclear disarmament, which does not address civilian weapons and military systems whose firepower and extent of damage can be considerable. The war in Iraq has led to the deaths of tens of thousands of civilians. In the Korean War, hundreds of thousands have died. In so-called "new Wars" in Africa, millions have died. In none of these cases were nuclear weapons used. Yet, the extent of civilian and military deaths have been considerable, surpassing the damage caused by the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II.

This Encyclopaedia will be of great help for the students of M.Sc./M.Phil/Ph.D. in Disarmament Studies.