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Nuclear Weapons and Warfare

Nuclear Weapons and Warfare
commentary
Beyond Strategic Patience with North Korea: What Comes Next?
Bruce W. Bennett @bwbennett
Sep 8, 2017
The Ripon Forum
North Korea says that nuclear weapons are essential to regime survival. The United States should figure out how to persuade the North Korean regime that it is less likely to survive by posing a nuclear threat than by cooperating with the international community.
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Nuclear Weapons and Warfare
commentary
'Game of Thrones' Dragons, Nuclear Weapons, and Winning Whatever the Cost
Michael Shurkin @MichaelShurkin
Aug 24, 2017
Scientific American
HBO's hit series “Game of Thrones” may be fantasy, but it explores many challenges that are familiar to real-world leaders. The military use of dragons and the dilemma these beasts pose is one recent example.
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Arms Proliferation and Control
commentary
How We Can Keep Iran from Becoming the Next North Korea
Michael J. Mazarr
Aug 22, 2017
Fortune
The U.S. brokered an agreement to constrain North Korea's nuclear program 25 years ago but hard-liners abandoned it with vague intentions of coercing the North into something better. They never did, and now a runaway North Korean program poses real danger. This offers a powerful reason to preserve the Iranian nuclear deal.
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North Korea
essay
Understanding North Korea
Aug 18, 2017
How should the U.S. respond to North Korea's provocative behavior? Even the best military options could be cataclysmically bad, but there are nonmilitary options to convince Kim Jong Un that the costs of his provocations outweigh any benefits.
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North Korea
commentary
The North Korea Standoff: Have We Been Here Before?
James A. Thomson @thomson0145
Aug 14, 2017
Newsweek
How the United States responded to China's nuclear weapons program last century can provide lessons for today's debate about North Korea. For instance, the conclusion that the only option is deterrence is still sound.
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Arms Proliferation and Control
commentary
How Did North Korea Get Its Nuclear Capabilities So Far So Fast?
Daniel M. Gerstein @Daniel_Gerstein
Aug 14, 2017
U.S. News & World Report
The recent North Korean missile tests and other provocations have sent shock waves through the global national security community and heightened tensions throughout the region. How has North Korea increased its missile capabilities so dramatically in such a short period of time?
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Nuclear Deterrence
commentary
Contain, Deter, Transform: A Winning Strategy on North Korea
Michael J. Mazarr, Michael Johnson
Aug 9, 2017
The Hill
North Korea's missile tests and reported progress in nuclear warhead design have produced a volatile new urgency in U.S. policy. Contain, deter, and transform isn't a radical solution, but it's one that has worked before. This approach could preserve U.S. interests while avoiding war.
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United States
blog
RAND's Summer Reading List for Congress
Aug 4, 2017
Hill staffers can make the most of the Congressional recess with this list of must-read research and commentary on the policy issues they will be addressing this fall.
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Ballistic Missiles
commentary
A Surgical Strike Against North Korea? Not a Viable Option
Bruce W. Bennett @bwbennett
Jul 14, 2017
Fox News Channel
North Korea's July 4 launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile that could hit American soil has renewed talk of military intervention. But an effective limited military strike with minimal collateral damage and no escalation simply won't work.
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International Diplomacy
commentary
How China Could Truly Rein in North Korea
Derek Grossman @DerekJGrossman
Jun 20, 2017
The Cipher Brief
China has key pressure points at its disposal to help deter North Korea from nuclear activities. It could cut off oil supplies or limit other trade, or crack down on illicit finance networks as many of the banks laundering money for the regime are in China. It could also stop shielding Pyongyang at the UN.
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North Korea
blog
Conversations at RAND: Bruce W. Bennett on Security Tensions in Northeast Asia
Jun 8, 2017
The increasing tempo of developments in North Korea is of growing concern not only to South Korea but also to the U.S., Japan, and even China. At a RAND event, senior researcher Bruce Bennett discussed how complex the situation is and what options the U.S. has going forward.
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North Korea
commentary
End the Korean War, Finally
James Dobbins @Jim_Dobbins, Jeffrey W. Hornung
Jun 8, 2017
New York Times
Sixty-four years ago, the Korean War was suspended by a cease-fire. A peace treaty was never signed. Standing ready to formally end this old war may be the key to dismantling North Korea's nuclear program without starting a new one.
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Threat Assessment
commentary
How Trump Can Deter Russia and All of America's Other Enemies
Andrew R. Hoehn, Sonni Efron
Apr 26, 2017
Fortune
There is no such thing as blanket deterrence. Rather, one must deter a specific adversary from taking a specific action. A holistic approach should include ramping up U.S. capabilities to anticipate emerging threats, including events that are unlikely to happen.
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International Diplomacy
commentary
Despite Promising Signs, China's North Korea Policy Unchanged
Derek Grossman @DerekJGrossman
Apr 24, 2017
The Cipher Brief
Official statements and public discussions on China's willingness to punish or otherwise influence North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in a direction favorable to U.S. interests have been optimistic lately. But China's continued support of the North should temper expectations.
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Military Strategy
commentary
Thinking Constructively About Overmatch
Robert W. Button
Mar 21, 2017
RealClearDefense
To regain military superiority the Pentagon has suggested a strategy that focuses on emerging technologies and deterrence. But it will need more than new technologies to deter and respond to aggression; it should also take into account grand strategy and acquisition considerations and keep countering Russia and China a top priority.
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South Korea
commentary
A Political Earthquake in Seoul and Its Repercussions for U.S. Policy
Booseung Chang
Jan 25, 2017
The National Interest
With new administrations in the U.S. and South Korea, it's time to find a middle ground and set up a new common policy toward North Korea. The pressures felt by both countries make the relationship all the more vital to the historical allies.
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Page 1 of 11

Nuclear Weapons and Warfare

Beyond Strategic Patience with North Korea: What Comes Next?

'Game of Thrones' Dragons, Nuclear Weapons, and Winning Whatever the Cost

How We Can Keep Iran from Becoming the Next North Korea

Understanding North Korea

The North Korea Standoff: Have We Been Here Before?

How Did North Korea Get Its Nuclear Capabilities So Far So Fast?

Contain, Deter, Transform: A Winning Strategy on North Korea

RAND's Summer Reading List for Congress

A Surgical Strike Against North Korea? Not a Viable Option

How China Could Truly Rein in North Korea

Conversations at RAND: Bruce W. Bennett on Security Tensions in Northeast Asia

End the Korean War, Finally

How Trump Can Deter Russia and All of America's Other Enemies

Despite Promising Signs, China's North Korea Policy Unchanged

Thinking Constructively About Overmatch

A Political Earthquake in Seoul and Its Repercussions for U.S. Policy

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