[The Pheonix]

Japan and all small island states with high population densities have an intrinsic disadvantage when having an all-out nuclear exchange with big continental land-mass nations like Russia and China

Russia, China, and the USA could disperse their population and industrial centres

But Japan, Britian etc would suffer much, much more damage due to a higher concentration of population and industrial centres---say 85% of JApanese poplation and industrial capacity destroyed, vs 30% for Russia

just my 2 cents worth

[jriemer]

A potentially nuclear Japan would be a deterrant against agression and intimidation in the region. Right now, NK can easily vaporize any Japanese city / industrial center. By introducing the possibility of a nuclear Japan, NK would have to keep in their calculus the cost of retaliaion. This "equation" doesn't even factor in the American nuclear weapons in the region.

This is the same mutally assured destruction that has kept the Cold war cool all these years.

[bonesmccoy]

Wiping out industrial centers in China is not very difficult. They really only have two areas.. Shanghai and Hong Kong. Shengzhen might be a third. When nuclear effects are large enough, you can easily wipe out the industrial productivity of California with four well placed warheads (Oakland, SF, LA basin, San Jose).

But your point regarding population centers is well taken. The surrounding areas around Hiroshima and Nagasaki had "suburban" populations who survived the only nuclear attacks on civilian targets in world history.