Subject Matter Expertise: Nuclear weapons and policy; Deterrence theory and practice; Countering WMD; Missile Defense; NATO; Professional Military Education (Curriculum Development)
Paul I. Bernstein is a Distinguished Fellow at the Center for the Study of Weapons of Mass Destruction, National Defense University in Washington, DC, and a member of the university’s Research Faculty. He leads the Center’s practice in strategic security analysis, and is engaged in a range of policy support, research, and professional military education activities related to WMD, nuclear policy, deterrence, threat reduction, and regional security. He works in collaboration with the Office of the Secretary of Defense, Joint Staff, Services, combatant commands and defense agencies. He is currently Senior Advisor to the Office of the Secretary of Defense (Nuclear Policy) in support of the Nuclear Posture Review. Mr. Bernstein is a contributing author of the Department of Defense Strategy for Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction and has been an adviser to the Defense Science Board and the DoD Threat Reduction Advisory Committee. He is an instructor in the CAPSTONE program, guest lectures at other military education venues, and has developed multiple curricula for nuclear and WMD instruction. He is author or co-author most recently of “Multi-Domain Deterrence: Some Framing Considerations,” “Toward Nuclear and WMD Fluency in Professional Military Education,” “China’s Hypersonic Weapons,” “Toward an Integrated Strategic Deterrent,” and “Weapons of Mass Destruction, Strategic Deterrence, and Great Power Competition.”
Selected Publications:
- Paul Bernstein and Austin Long, “Multi-Domain Deterrence: Some Framing Considerations,” pp. 6-15 in Getting the Multi-domain Challenge Right, Brad Roberts, ed.,Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Center for Global Security Research, December 2021. https://cgsr.llnl.gov/content/assets/docs/CGSR_Getting-the-Multi-Domain-Challenge-Right.pdf
- “Toward Nuclear and WMD Fluency in Professional Military Education,” (with Amy Nelson), Real Clear Defense, 26 June 2021. https://www.realcleardefense.com/articles/2021/06/26/toward_nuclear_and_wmd_fluency_inprofessional_military_education_783078.html
- China’s Hypersonic Weapons, Georgetown Journal of International Affairs, 27 January 2020. https://gjia.georgetown.edu/2021/01/27/chinas-hypersonic-weapons/
- “Weapons of Mass Destruction, Strategic Deterrence, and Great Power Competition” (lead author) in Strategic Assessment 2020: Into a New Era of Great Power Competition, ed. Lynch, Institute for National Strategic Studies, National Defense University, October 2020. https://wmdcenter.ndu.edu/Portals/97/Strategic-Assessment-2020.pdf
- “Toward an Integrated Strategic Deterrent,” in Fit for Purpose? The U.S. Strategic Posture in 2030 and Beyond, ed. Roberts, Center for Global Security Research, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, October 2020. https://cgsr.llnl.gov/content/assets/docs/The-US-Strategic-Posture-in-2030-and-Beyond.pdf
- “Russia’s Hypersonic Weapons,” Georgetown Journal of International Affairs, 12 December 2019. https://gjia.georgetown.edu/2019/12/12/russias-hypersonic-weapons/
- “Power Under Parity,” in Power Under Parity, A Virtual Think Tank (ViTTa) Report, NSI, produced in support of the Strategic Multilayer Assessment Office, Joint Staff/J39, September 2019. https://nsiteam.com/power-under-parity-a-future-of-global-competition-and-conflict-virtual-think-tank-report/
- “‘Innovating’ versus ‘Out-Innovating:’ Innovation as a Form of Strategic Competition,” in Getting Innovation Right, Center for Global Security Research, ed. Dreicer, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, September 2019. https://cgsr.llnl.gov/content/assets/docs/Getting-Innovation-Right.pdf
- “Contemporary Deterrence Challenges,” in The Return of Deterrence: Credibility and Capabilities in a New Era, eds. Braun, von Hlatky and Nossal, Kingston Conference on International Security, 2019. https://www.queensu.ca/kcis/publications/2018-return-deterrence
- “Making Russia Think Twice About Nuclear Threats.” War On The Rocks, 9 March 2016. http://warontherocks.com/2016/03/making-russia-think-twice-about-nuclear-threats/