ABSTRACT The South Asian nuclear race is moving to sea, with India’s government announcing that it has successfully put nuclear weapons at sea, and evidence suggesting that Pakistan is preparing to do so. This article traces India’s decision to deploy nuclear-powered submarines, some armed with nuclear weapons, and the debate in Pakistan on the utility of nuclear-armed submarines and the possible acquisition of nuclear-powered submarines. The article then reviews the global history of submarine accidents, especially those where nuclear-powered submarines were involved, and looks in particular at the consequences of a potential naval reactor accident where radioactivity might be released into the environment. Such naval reactor accidents constitute a major but unappreciated challenge associated with the deployment of nuclear submarines in addition to new pathways for escalation to nuclear war that are more widely recognized.

中文翻译：

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南亚核潜艇：新的风险和危险

摘要南亚核竞赛正在走向海上，印度政府宣布已成功将核武器置于海上，有证据表明巴基斯坦正在准备这样做。本文追溯了印度部署核动力潜艇（其中一些配备有核武器）的决定，以及巴基斯坦在核武器潜艇的实用性和可能购买核动力潜艇方面的辩论。然后，文章回顾了全球潜艇事故的历史，特别是涉及核动力潜艇的事故，并特别探讨了可能将放射性释放到环境中的潜在海军反应堆事故的后果。