Nuclear Security
The Case for Diplomatic Engagement on the Korean Peninsula
April 15, 2013
This past week, Secretary of State Kerry travelled to meet with American partners in Asia – including South Korea, Japan and China – to put the pieces in place for diplomatically engaging North Korea at the “appropriate moment.” While recent calls for massively destabilizing military strikes against North Korea are not supported by experts or our [...]
The Role of Nuclear Weapons in Today’s Strategic Environment
March 5, 2013
For some time military and national security experts have called for reducing the role of nuclear weapons in U.S. military posture. Yet the House Appropriations Committee voted yesterday to exempt spending on nuclear weapons from sequestration-type cuts. As the House Armed Services subcommittee on Strategic Forces prepares to review “requirements for a strong deterrent in [...]
Heather Hurlburt Quoted In U.S. News & World Report On North Korea’s Nuclear Testing
February 12, 2013
Expert: North Korea’s Nuclear Test Not About Obama’s State of the Union By Rebekah Metzler February 12, 2013 | U.S. News & World Report A confirmed nuclear test in North Korea on the eve of President Barack Obama’s fifth State of the Union address is likely more about internal messaging than it is about international [...]
North Korea’s Nuclear Test: Known and Unknowns
North Korea claims to have just conducted its third test of a nuclear device. What is not known is whether the device was plutonium-based like previous devices or uranium-based, which would allow North Korea to produce a larger number of weapons because it continues uranium enrichment but no longer produces plutonium. Whether North Korea has [...]
Reagan, Hagel and the Role of Nuclear Weapons
February 4, 2013
Twenty-six years ago, Ronald Reagan attempted – and almost succeeded – to negotiate a deal with the Soviet Union that would have eliminated all U.S. and Soviet nuclear weapons in ten years. Every president since Reagan has downsized America’s nuclear arsenal, as experts across the political spectrum say the weapons, and their Cold War targeting [...]
What to Know about North Korea’s Upcoming Nuclear Test
January 31, 2013
Following a recent successful rocket launch, North Korea is threatening a nuclear test which it said would be directed “against the U.S.” A North Korean nuclear test would be a threat to regional peace and stability. It is worrisome news for U.S. interests in Northeast Asia and for global efforts to prevent the spread of [...]
Behind North Korea’s Missile Launch
December 12, 2012
Late last night North Korea successfully launched an Unha-3 rocket, putting a Kwangmyongsong-3 (Shining Star-3) satellite into orbit. This launch comes following a failed attempt in April. The launch is in violation of two UN resolutions prohibiting North Korea from testing ballistic missile technology and has been widely condemned by the international community and the [...]
Securing the Nuclear Threat in a Tight Budgetary Environment
December 6, 2012
This week marked the twentieth anniversary of the Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction (CTR) program. The program to help the former Soviet states secure nuclear weapons stockpiles was initiated by Sen. Richard Lugar (R-IN) and former Sen. Sam Nunn (D-GA) and helped deactivate more than 7,600 nuclear warheads. The program, and its success over two decades, [...]
Before the Debate, What You Need To Know about Progressive Foreign Policy
October 18, 2012
On Monday President Obama and Governor Romney will hold their final debate of this campaign season, and the only one dedicated to national security and foreign policy. National security issues and the so-called commander-in-chief test have served voters as a surrogate for broader questions about leadership and vision, even in an election year dominated by [...]
Fifty Years After the Cuban Missile Crisis
October 17, 2012
This month marks the 50th anniversary of the Cuban Missile Crisis, the thirteen days in October 1962 that brought the United States and the Soviet Union to the brink of nuclear war. Commentators and a trove of newly-declassified documents have pointed to several important lessons for American statecraft and several ways that today’s national security [...]
