Of all the divisive issues that fueled the flames of the conflict that formed the heart of the Cold War, none of them affected the 'issue as development and testing. nuclear weapons and the politics surrounding their handling. After the long years of fighting in World War II, many of the former world powers were significantly weakened. The American detonation of Little Boy and Fat Man on Hiroshima and Nagasaki respectively attracted worldwide attention and showed American superiority in technological and military power (atomcentral.com). Such capabilities were far from accessible to any other country and would become one of the main factors determining the balance of global power. Other countries coveted the influence the United States had gained. Mainly a country with a completely different worldview and way of life than the United States. This country was the new Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. Known as the USSR, they quickly began to gain ground on the United States in terms of nuclear technologies. A rivalry is established between these two nations, to become the undisputed world power. This rivalry would manifest itself on a global scale for many years, surfacing through the numerous altercations that were the Cold War. Although the Cold War, as a whole, was made up of many facets, the one that primarily influenced its outcome was the same primary reason that motivated the United States' initial position as a world power: the possession of nuclear technologies. advances. A deadly race is underway between these two countries, a race for nuclear domination, a race that will define the Cold War. On September 3, 1949, the President of the United States of America, Harry S. Truman, announced.... . middle of paper ......ng to find ways to protect them too, to finally find a resolution. Even so, their usefulness and influence in the final outcome of the Cold War cannot be denied. The world is different in many ways because of them. The United States is a global power, and the Soviet Union has all but disappeared, its vast quantities of nuclear weapons scattered around the world. TsarBomba.html http://www.coldwar.org/articles/90s/fall_of_the_soviet_union.asp http://www.atomcentral.com/hiroshima-nagasaki.aspx United Nations General Assembly and Conference of the Committee on Disarmament. Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxic Weapons and on Their Destruction. Implementation of the decisions of the Geneva Summit (c)