The threat from long-range nuclear missiles is growing and endangers the lives of millions of Americans, while upsetting regional and global stability. America needs a comprehensive ballistic missile defense system that employs a multilayered defense system of sea, ground, and space-based systems.
Issues 2012 provides candidates for elected office the ability to quickly identify the key issues of the day and present clear policy recommendations, supported by facts, for addressing them. Read More.
A one-hour documentary that tells the story of the very real threat foreign enemies pose to every one of us. No matter where on Earth a missile is launched, it would take 33 minutes or less to hit the U.S. Read More.
This Heritage Foundation research offers policy recommendations that would protect the U.S. and its allies from missiles tipped with nuclear weapons. Read More.
Threats to America’s security, way of life, and allies are increasing rather than decreasing. Instability persists in the Middle East, terrorists continue to plot attacks, adversaries buy and sell ballistic missiles and nuclear technology, and the intent of countries with the ability to pose a strategic threat to the U.S.…
Abstract: President Barack Obama has proposed a woefully inadequate budget for missile defense for FY 2013, neglecting his duty to defend the United States against foreign military threats. This is consistent with the President’s overall neglect of missile defense and his willingness to subordinate…
This year, Turkey celebrates its 60th anniversary as a member of the NATO alliance. As a Muslim-majority country with close ties to Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, Turkey’s participation in NATO is integral to the alliance’s influence beyond Europe’s borders. However, while Turkish membership provides the alliance with extended…
Peter Brookes discusses India's nuclear weapons on Fox News. …
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHwjHgpct5w&feature=youtu.be http://blog.heritage.org/2012/04/13/exclusive-video-condoleezza-rice-implores-u-s-to-leave-military-option-on-the-table-in-iran-talks/ Former United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice sat down with The Heritage Foundation to discuss the importance of strong U.S. leadership in promoting peace and stability…
Bruce Klingner discusses N. Korea's failed missile launch on CNBC World's Cashflow. …
Peter Brooks discusses North Korea's planned missile launch on Fox News. …
North Korea announced that it would launch a satellite in mid-April, a provocative move that jeopardizes a recent diplomatic agreement with the United States. Despite Pyongyang’s attempts to portray the launch as a peaceful civilian satellite program, it would be an unequivocal violation of U.N. resolutions 1718 and 1874, which…
Abstract: In passing the FY 2012 defense authorization and appropriations bills, Congress missed an ideal opportunity to reverse the damage that the Obama Administration inflicted on U.S. missile defense programs in 2010. Congress specifically failed to move the U.S. toward a more defensive nuclear…
It is already clear that the U.S. capabilities necessary for meeting the nation’s global security requirements will not be met if current defense budget policies are left in place. The lack of funding will translate into a U.S. military that might not be able to control the skies, have enough…
An electromagnetic pulse (EMP) produced by the detonation of a nuclear weapon at high altitude or as the result of unusually powerful solar activity (often called severe space weather) could produce catastrophic destruction in the United States. Congress has long deliberated this threat, but it has not produced substantive legislative…
Abstract: An electromagnetic pulse (EMP) over the United States could end modern life in America overnight. Whether caused by an enemy attack (a nuclear device detonated above the atmosphere) or by a natural phenomenon (a geomagnetic storm), an EMP can cause entire regions of…
Abstract: The U.S. nuclear triad of heavy bombers, intercontinental-range ballistic missiles (ICBMs), and submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) is aging. The nuclear testing moratorium, which has reached nearly two decades, and the required reductions under New START are magnifying questions about the U.S. nuclear arsenal’s reliability. These growing questions will eventually…
The Senate Appropriations Committee has moved to eliminate development funding for the Navy’s Standard Missile-3 Block II-B missile defense interceptor in its version of the Defense appropriations bill for fiscal year 2012. This interceptor is part of the broader Navy program for developing and deploying Aegis weapons system-based missile defense…
Iran is rattling sabers. Iraq may be falling apart. In North Korea, one of the world’s most inexperienced and unpredictable leaders has his thumb on the country’s nuclear button. Talks with the Taliban look like an instant replay of the Paris peace negotiations with Hanoi. The Arab Spring has turned…
Some arguments are worth repeating. Take missile defense. The basic justification for developing this weapon system has not changed much since President Reagan proposed it in 1983. But the threats have changed. In fact, the threats we face are more varied and are evolving at a faster rate than at…
Since President Obama took office, the White House has systematically undercut comprehensive missile defense and thereby placed the U.S. homeland at greater risk. On February 1, the Administration released its Ballistic Missile Defense Review Report. The report indicates that it will continue to pursue a less-than-robust…
The Bush Administration's initiative to sell civilian nuclear technology to India, a de facto nuclear-weapon state, is a landmark decision that will have a broad and lasting impact on the international nonproliferation regime. The challenge will be to develop cooperative nuclear energy relationships with friendly, democratic, de facto nuclear powers such…
Abstract: Most Americans—whether members of the public or politicians in Congress—ignore or are unaware of the very real threat of an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) attack. A nuclear device detonated high in the atmosphere above the American mainland can easily disable the country’s electrical grid—shutting…
Since the end of the Cold War, the Air Force has struggled to maintain standards of excellence when fulfilling one of its most important missions: being prepared to respond to an adversarial nuclear attack. Recently, the Air Force has decided to move away from having one squadron of bombers dedicated…
Section 1228 of the House version of the National Defense Authorization Act (H.R. 1540), sponsored by Representative Mo Brooks (R–AL), would impose an absolute ban on sharing sensitive missile defense technology with Russia, including the technology for performing hit-to-kill intercepts of attacking ballistic missiles. On the…
During the NATO meeting in Chicago, the alliance will declare that it has an interim operational capability to defend...…
In his recent piece in The Wall Street Journal, Senator Jon Kyl (R–AZ) makes the case that the United States should not...…
According to press reports, the House Armed Services Committee has preserved a provision in its draft of annual defense...…
Yet again, critics of the U.S. missile defense program have been proven wrong. On Wednesday, the U.S. Navy conducted a...…
Yousaf Butt of the Federation of American Scientists attempts yet again to distort facts about the U.S. missile defense...…
In April, the Independent Working Group (IWG) on Missile Defense and the Space Relationship held an event on the new...…
During a recent missile defense conference in Moscow, Russian Chief of General Staff Nikolai Makarov stated, “A decision...…
In a recent National Journal article, three-quarters of defense experts interviewed opposed any attempt by the Obama...…
North Korea unveiled a new missile during its April parade celebrating the 100th anniversary of the country’s founder,...…
Missile defense continues to come under attack despite significant advancements of the technology, especially since...…
Senior Fellow, National Security Affairs and Chung Ju-Yung Fellow for Policy Studies
Senior Research Fellow for Russian and Eurasian Studies and International Energy Policy, The Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for International Studies
Research Fellow, Asian Studies Center
Deputy Director, The Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for International Studies and Director, Douglas and Sarah Allison Center for Foreign Policy Studies
Vice President, Foreign and Defense Policy Studies, and Director, The Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for International Studies
Senior Research Fellow, Northeast Asia
F.M. Kirby Research Fellow in National Security Policy
Distinguished Fellow