Nuclear arms are weapons of mass destruction and their existence represents the gravest threat to global security and stability in the post-cold-war context. ---- It may be just a question of time before terrorist groups and individuals lay their hands on them.
(A) The scale of their destructive potential and the perceived addition to military might and deterrent effect explain both the monopoly that nuclear weapons states insist on retaining and the ever-growing quest for their acquisition by other states.
(B) It is clear too that it will be difficult for states to retain total control over nuclear material and weapons.
(C) But countries cannot do without them in a situation where the landscape is dotted with conflict-zones.
Explanation:
Correct Answer is (a).The opening sentence says that the nuclear weapons are a threat to global safety and security. But still why do states insist on possessing it? The answer is in sentence A. It gives them the military might and also the deterrent effect. Sentence B follows A and ideally precedes the last sentence. It says that the states cannot continue retaining their monopoly over these weapons as the terrorists and individual groups will soon lay their hands on these weapons.