Arms race

[4][7] British concern about rapid increase in German naval power resulted in a costly building competition of Dreadnought-class ships.

This contest of the advancement of offensive nuclear capabilities occurred during the Cold War, an intense period between the Soviet Union and the United States and some other countries.

Proxy wars were fought all over the world (e.g. in the Middle East, Korea, and Vietnam) in which the superpowers' conventional weapons were pitted against each other.

Charles Glaser argues that numerous cases of arms races were suboptimal, as they entailed a waste of resources, damaged political relations, increased the probability of war, and hindered states in accomplishing their goals.

An arms race may also imply futility as the competitors spend a great deal of time and money, yet with neither side gaining an advantage over the other.