Description
Highly destructive and relatively scarce, nuclear weapons seem like the quintessential status symbol. However, the relationship between nuclear weapons and status recognition remains relatively unexplored. In this chapter, I argue that state attributes matter for status recognition because of their symbolic value, which depends on the social context, rather than because of their intrinsic properties. High-status states typically act like standard-setters, shaping the criteria for status recognition in the international system; and as gatekeepers, shaping recognition decisions. Since the great powers colluded to stigmatize nuclear weapons in the 1960s and 1970s, I do not expect nuclearization to improve a country's standing. Using network analysis and the synthetic control method, I examine how nuclearization impacts the diplomatic recognition a country receives. My analysis shows that nuclearization had either a negative impact or no impact on the international recognition received by the countries that acquired nuclear weapons since 1970. Neither did nuclearization evoke recognition from the great powers more specifically during this period. In the eyes of the international community, the typical profile of a nuclearizing state nowadays seems to be that of a deviant—rather than exemplary—state.
