The overarching question imparting urgency to this exploration is: Can U.S.-Russian contention in cyberspace cause the two nuclear superpowers to stumble into war? In considering this question we were constantly reminded of recent comments by a prominent U.S. arms control expert: At least as dangerous as the risk of an actual cyberattack, he observed, is cyber operations’ “blurring of the line between peace and war.” Or, as Nye wrote, “in the cyber realm, the difference between a weapon and a non-weapon may come down to a single line of code, or simply the intent of a computer program’s user.”
Lt. Col. Ronald Allen will provide an overview of U.S. nuclear missile operations and their role in deterrence.
Lieutenant Colonel Ronald G. Allen, Jr. is a joint research fellow with the International Security Program and Project on Managing the Atom. Prior to his current assignment, Lieutenant Colonel Allen was commander of the 625th Strategic Operations Squadron at Offutt AFB, Nebraska. He was responsible for all Minuteman III Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) targeting operations; the training, testing, and operation of the ICBM Airborne Launch Control System; the analysis of foreign ballistic missiles and development of the nation's Integrated Tactical Warning and Attack Assessment database; and operations management of the world-wide Strategic Automated Command and Control System (SACCS).