Nuclear Issues

Former UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-Moon (MPP ‘85) and former Acting Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, Susan Thornton, will discuss the negotiations for peace and security on the Korean Peninsula. This forum event will be moderated by Ambassador Nicholas Burns, Roy and Barbara Goodman Family Professor of the Practice of Diplomacy and International Relations and Faculty Chair of the Future of Diplomacy Project.

A full transcript of the speech given by Senator Jack Reed of Rhode Island at the Harvard Kennedy School on April 23, 2018 at the Future of Diplomacy's seminar entitled "A Conversation with Senator Jack Reed on American National Security."

CSIS hosted Ernest J. Moniz, the co-chair and CEO of NTI and former U.S. Secretary of Energy, for a discussion in which he addressed the increased risk of nuclear miscalculation against the backdrop of today’s rapidly evolving global security threats, the need to rethink outdated nuclear deterrence postures, and the imperative to prevent nuclear proliferations and develop new fuel-cycle policy solutions. Moniz also discussed the future of the Iran nuclear agreement and the current crisis with North Korea. His remarks were followed by a discussion with John Hamre, president and CEO of CSIS.

Olli Heinonen writes that though that there is no foolproof plan to chart outcomes, it remains very much within our control to take certain steps and actions that can make the future less uncertain and better managed its direction. The Task Force Assessment Report on Nuclear Monitoring and Verification Technology by the Defense Science Board is essential in providing a forward-looking framework and recommendations to better prepare us to prevent and shape nuclear proliferation choices.

The genesis of DPRK’s nuclear aspirations can be traced to the aftermath of the Korean War. To develop its own nuclear capability, North Korea initiated the building of a strong national cadre of nuclear technicians and scientists, which were trained mainly in the former Soviet Union. In 1955, North Korea founded the Atomic Energy Research Institute. The Soviets also helped the North Koreans establish a nuclear research center and built a 2 MWth IRT nuclear research reactor at Yongbyon, which began operation in 1969.

Olli Heinonen, senior fellow at Harvard Kennedy School's Belfer Center, made this presentation on the inauguration of a new multimillion dollar instrument at the Transuranium Institute in Germany on June 1, 2012.

A presentation to the International Symposium on Nuclear Security and the Korean Peninsula on the policy considerations of China's plutonium recycling plans.

This paper will discuss the status of China’s nuclear power reactors, breeders, and civilian reprocessing programs. In addition, this paper will examine whether the breeders and civilian reprocessing programs make sense for China, taking into account costs, proliferation risks, energy security tradeoffs, health and environmental risks, and spent fuel management issues.

A slide presentation by Belfer Center Senior Fellow Olli Heinonen on March 6, 2012, assessing North Korea's nuclear program. Heinonen made the presentation to a seminar of the Project on Managing the Atom at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School.

A presentation discussing the current state of highly enriched uranium (HEU) minimization efforts in the U.S. and Russia, with recommendations for further steps in consolidating fissile material.