Australia's stance on nuclear deterrence leaves it on the wrong side of history

There has been much hand-wringing at the thought of Donald Trump becoming US president. If, by some miracle, Trump succeeds in November, he will have his hand on the nuclear trigger. But this concern, while great political fodder, is dangerously simplistic. It presupposes there are 'safe hands' when it comes to nuclear weapons. There are not. The US has around 7,000 nuclear weapons. Hundreds of these can be launched within minutes. While the global community has outlawed other indiscriminate weapons of mass destruction, nuclear weapons are yet to be banned.