Please see todays daily update from Epic Investment Partners received this morning:
A few days ago, we learned that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had suspended a junior cabinet member from meetings “until further notice.” This action was taken in response to a comment that seemed to imply the individual would not object to nuclear weapons being used on Gaza. Israel’s far-right Heritage Minister, Amihay Eliyahu, also suggested that displaced refugees could “relocate to Ireland or deserts,” and that the “individuals in Gaza should find a solution on their own.”
In light of this suspension, we decided to investigate the number of nuclear weapons that Israel – and indeed the rest of the world – currently possess. We obtained our data from Google Bard. In ascending order, North Korea has 10 nuclear weapons, followed by Israel with 90. Pakistan and India have approximately 165 and 150 respectively. France has 290, while the UK has 225. China has 280, although a recent Pentagon report estimates that China now has around 500 operational warheads. However, even when combined, these figures represent only about 10% of the total number of nuclear weapons that the US and Russia possess. The US has 5,428 weapons, while Russia has 5,977.
On a positive note, the total number of nuclear weapons worldwide is estimated to be ‘only’ around 13,000. While still a large number, this is a significant decrease from the peak of over 70,000 during the Cold War.
Thankfully, we don’t have a narcissistic maniac or someone old enough to be many people’s great (great?) grandad with their fingers on the proverbial big red button!
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Andrew Lloyd DipPFS
08/12/2023