Threats
America’s Allies Are Becoming a Nuclear-Proliferation Threat
Some of the United States' oldest allies are considering the once-unthinkable: building their own nuclear weapons.
Ideas
Don’t Let On-Site Inspections Go Extinct
In-person visits to foreign military bases and weapons facilities improve national security in more ways than meet the eye.
Policy
A New Nuclear Warhead? STRATCOM Chief Can’t Answer Yes or No
The W93 has been the focus of questions since it appeared in the 2021 budget proposal.
Policy
Esper Plays Nuclear War: Russia Nukes Europe, US Fires Back
The defense secretary took part in a classified drill at U.S. Strategic Command this week.
Ideas
The US Doesn’t Need a New New START
There is no reason to believe that withdrawing from the current one would improve U.S. security.
Ideas
Trump’s Bid to Go Big on Nuclear Arms Looks Like a Fizzle
Russia has no interest in negotiating from scratch. China has no interest in negotiating at all.
Ideas
2020 Dems Need To Get Up To Speed on Nuclear Weapons. Fast.
Front-runners have displayed key misunderstandings, while other candidates have shied away from the topic.
Ideas
How Quickly Could Iran Get a Nuclear Bomb?
A former National Nuclear Security Administration coordinator explains breakout time — and why it’s getting shorter.
Ideas
Progress, Peril, Hope: The Nuclear Decade in Review
U.S. policies that restrained and shrank atomic arsenals have been abandoned. Yet there are hopeful trends as well.
Ideas
Inside the Collapse of Trump’s Korea Policy
When it comes to America’s last-ditch effort to prevent North Korea from becoming a nuclear power, timing has been everything. Now time’s running out.
Ideas
The Trump Administration’s ‘Denuclearization’ Is A Road to Nowhere
U.S. policy will remain stuck as long as the administration continues to convince itself that the North’s nuclear dismantlement can be achieved on Washington’s timeline.
Business
Boeing Declines to Bid for ICBM, Leaving Northrop the Sole Contestant
As bidding deadline passes, Air Force must decide whether to accept a sole-source situation.
Ideas
Democrats Retreat on Nuclear Policy
The 2020 authorization bill fails to check Trump’s worst impulses.
Ideas
A New Nuclear Deal? Start with New START
Russia is ready to extend this critical treaty, but Trump isn’t taking “yes” for an answer.
Ideas
Trump Just Ghosted NATO, But Here’s What He Said That Matters
The president was on a roll until he surrendered a final chance to lay out his concerns and priorities.
Threats
How North Korea Soured on Donald Trump
Kim Jong Un only wanted to engage with the president. Now he’s turning on him.
Ideas
Dear Pope Francis: While You're in Japan, Call for No First Use
The pontiff was already planning to call for global nuclear disarmament. Asking the U.S. to adopt a no-first-use policy would make the world a bit safer, faster.
Science & Tech
The Air Force’s ‘Doomsday Plane’ Is in the Shop
The E-4B, a plane that would quarterback a nuclear war, has lost its secondary mission as the SecDef’s main long-haul ride.
Ideas
Pull the Nukes from Turkey — and Then Think Bigger
Removing America’s nuclear weapons from Incirlik Air Base doesn’t have to drive a permanent wedge between Washington and Turkey.
Business