Fit for Purpose? The U.S. Strategic Posture in 2030 and Beyond Oct. 15, 2020

The Tripolar Strategic Balance in 2030

Ambassador Linton F. Brooks explores the trilateral strategic relationship among the United States, the Russian Federation, and the People’s Republic of China to give some plausible outlines of that relationship in 2030, the variables on which it will depend and its implications for U.S. nuclear policy.

Dec. 13, 2019

Russia's Hypersonic Weapons

While Russian hypersonic weapons could pose problems for U.S. and NATO defense planning, their introduction in the near-term is not likely to fundamentally alter the existing balance of power or the prospects for strategic stability.

Sept. 20, 2019

Power Under Parity

Distinguished Research Fellow Paul Bernstein contributed his expertise to this report on strategic parity in an era of great power competition.

July 23, 2019

Book Review: The End of Strategic Stability?: Nuclear Weapons and the Challenge of Regional Rivalries

In this book review, published in Strategic Studies Quarterly, Dr. Justin Anderson argues that Rubin and Stulberg's volume will leave readers better informed about how Great Powers and regional actors believe nuclear weapons either undergird or undermine strategic stability.

Dec. 3, 2018

Deterrence in the 21st Century: Integrating Nuclear and Conventional Force

In this article, published in Strategic Studies Quarterly, Robert Peters, Justin Anderson, and Harrison Menke advocate better integration between nuclear deterrence strategies and nuclear deterrence operations with US conventional defense policy, strategy, and planning processes.

May 10, 2018

Iran's Strategic Culture: Implications for Nuclear Policy

Fort Lesley J McNair — This book chapter, published in Crossing Nuclear Thresholds: Leveraging Sociocultural Insights into Nuclear Decisionmaking assesses the principal drivers of Iran's strategic culture and their broader implications for the country's nuclear decisionmaking processes.

Jan. 23, 2018

Negotiating a Nuclear "Code of Conduct"

The NPT five lack shared norms of nuclear behavior. Pursuing a nuclear code of conduct could resolve that and help increase both dialogue and stability.

March 20, 2017

March Issue, Arms Control Today: "Deter and Downsize: A Paradigm Shift for Nuclear Arms Control"

The nuclear triad approach to nuclear arms control deserves recognition for playing an important role in limiting and ultimately contributing to the reduction of their respective deployed nuclear forces, but it is unable to address the nuclear competition within the present geostrategic environment, where multiple states view nuclear forces as critically important to their long-term security. If nuclear arms control is to play a key role in preventing friction between nuclear powers and reducing nuclear risks in the 21st century, there needs to be a shift in focus and an expansion in participants.

Nov. 3, 2016

Weapons of Mass Destruction: Challenges for the New Administration

The 2015 National Security Strategy identifies the proliferation and/or use of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) among the top strategic risks to the Nation’s interests. This paper examines four pressing WMD challenges for the next U.S. administration. First, the prospects of a direct clash between the United States and a nuclear-armed adversary

Sept. 1, 2016

Law of War Considerations In Fielding Nuclear Forces

The status of nuclear weapons within international law was a subject of intense debate during last fall’s UN General Assembly First Committee session. State supporters of the humanitarian initiative on nuclear weapons pressed for resolutions asserting the illegality of nuclear weapons and sought to build support for the near-term negotiation of a