This report investigates the complex intersection of conventional military modernization and nuclear stability among China, India, and Pakistan following the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty. Eric H. Arnett, a researcher at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), utilizes regional security data and political analysis to argue that conventional defensive systems, specifically counter-air capabilities, inadvertently destabilize the nuclear status quo. The text provides a framework for understanding how regional arms transfers complicate traditional deterrence models in South Asia.

Experts recognize this report as a foundational analysis of the South Asian security dilemma during the late 1990s. Readers frequently note the technical density of the prose and its importance for understanding the strategic motivations behind regional military procurement.