Journal Article - Journal of International Security Affairs

Squaring the Nonproliferation Circle

| Spring/Summer 2014

"Today, the Cold War has disappeared but thousands of [nuclear] weapons have not. In a strange turn of history, the threat of global nuclear war has gone down, but the risk of a nuclear attack has gone up. More nations have acquired these weapons. Testing has continued. Black market trade in nuclear secrets and nuclear materials abound. The technology to build a bomb has spread. Terrorists are determined to buy, build or steal one.” So said President Barack Obama in 2009, discussing the greatest threat he sees confronting the United States.

Now, five years after he uttered those words, it is worth evaluating the effectiveness of his policies to stem the threats of nuclear proliferation and terrorism. Are we safer from a nuclear detonation now than we were five years ago?

The full text of the article can be accessed below.

For more information on this publication: Belfer Communications Office
For Academic Citation: Tobey, William H.. Squaring the Nonproliferation Circle.” Journal of International Security Affairs, 26, (Spring/Summer 2014):
47-53
.

The Author