International Norms Development to Protect NC3 Systems & Safeguarding Nuclear Stability

Nuclear Command, Control and Communications (NC3) systems, critical for nuclear deterrence, face escalating cyberattack vulnerabilities, risking global security through nuclear escalation or accidental launches. The systems which are digitalized are vulnerable to disruption, data manipulation, or unauthorized access by state and non-state actors exploiting attribution challenges, dual-use infrastructure. Historical crises such as Cuban Missile Crisis, and Cyber incidents underscore cyberinduced miscalculation risks. This research uses qualitative analysis and offers a Treaty on the Prohibition of Cyberattacks on Nuclear systems, followed by the norm lifecycle model to develop norms via emergence, cascade and internalization. It analyzes norms, incidents and NC3 vulnerabilities, identifying gaps in NC3-specfic norms and verification. This treaty advocates legally binding prohibitions, verification via audits and digital forensics, and CBMs like information-sharing and joint exercises, fostering the cooperation to increase the stability and deter catastrophic escalation.