International Security & Defense

Juliette Kayyem knows how to have a 100 percent safe Olympics – don’t have an Olympics. Because perfect security is not possible, Kayyem says public officials should aim instead for perfect planning.

"if both the top-down and bottom-up methods of trust building are never going to be risk free, is there a more plausible third option? For example, what if Washington and Beijing forget about trust-building and instead opt for a relationship based on mutual deterrence? Unfortunately, the risks of this option — arms racing, a return to a Cold War-like MAD doctrine, and forever teetering on the brink of conventional conflict — might not just upend US-China relations, they might sabotage regional and global security as well."

"...[T]he United States has spent several tens of billions of dollars on missile defense research-and yet China, Iran, North Korea and possibly others have continued to pursue increasingly effective long-range ballistic capabilities. If missile defenses are a deterrent, why do US competitors-to say nothing of outright enemies-seem undeterred?"

Kennedy School students who focus on issues taught by Belfer Center faculty contribute to the Center's mission not only by conducting research projects and carrying Center findings and goals into the larger world, but also by bringing to the Center a wealth of viewpoints, ideas, and past experiences. Current students are no exception.

Markle Foundation Task Force report on Protecting America's Freedom in the Information Age

Most national security debates concern the outcomes of policies, neglecting the means by which those policies are implemented. This book argues that although the US military is the finest fighting force in the world, the system that supports it is in disrepair. Operating with Cold War-era structures and practices, it is subject to managerial and organizational problems that increasingly threaten our military's effectiveness.

An interview with Dr. Ashton B. Carter; Carter discusses the prospects for an American National Missile Defense system.

Article examining NATO's past, present, and future for the Eisenhower Institute

Dr. Ashton B. Carter's article in Scientific American