Issue Brief posted May 21, 2013 by Michaela Dodge
Top 10 To-Do List for the National Defense Authorization Act
The federal National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) annually specifies the budget and expenditures of the Department of Defense (DOD). The law can be a vehicle for both good and bad policies.
As Congress prepares to craft this legislation, it should seriously consider policy issues that can improve U.S. security and advance international partnerships:
1) …
Issue Brief posted May 15, 2013 by Michaela Dodge
Missile Defenses: Robust Testing Program Essential
Missile defense is a proven technology; repeated tests have proved that the system is so accurate that it can “hit a bullet with a bullet.” The United States should continue to provide and encourage a rigorous missile defense testing program, even if it means that intercepts do not happen.
Even “failed” tests, if properly constructed, contribute to the understanding and…
Backgrounder posted May 3, 2013 by Michaela Dodge
Beyond BRAC: Global Defense Infrastructure for the 21st Century
The budget cuts instituted under the Budget Control Act of 2011 are compelling the Administration and Congress to decrease the Department of Defense’s resources. These cuts dramatically undermine the country’s ability to protect its vital interests.[1] The cuts also increase pressures to conduct more base realignments and closures (BRACs). As these pressures increase, it…
Issue Brief posted March 14, 2013 by Michaela Dodge, Baker Spring
International Monitoring System as a Nuclear Test Verification Tool
During the Senate’s consideration of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) in 1996, the Clinton Administration touted the International Monitoring System (IMS) as one of the important verification measures contained in the treaty. Proponents of the treaty argued that if the treaty was not ratified, the IMS would not be built. This has proven to be false: 314 facilities…
Backgrounder posted February 27, 2013 by Michaela Dodge, Baker Spring
Keeping Nuclear Testing on the Table: A National Security Imperative
Since 1992, the United States has not tested nuclear weapons or conducted any yield-producing nuclear weapons experiment. In a few short years, all nuclear weapons engineers and scientists with experience in nuclear testing and weapons design will have retired. These developments will have a profound impact on the nation’s ability to innovate, assure allies, and deter…
Backgrounder posted January 4, 2013 by Michaela Dodge, Baker Spring
Bait and Switch on Nuclear Modernization Must Stop
The Obama Administration's Nuclear Weapons Policy
President Obama formulated his vision for the U.S. nuclear posture during his 2009 speech in Prague: "So today, I state clearly and with conviction America's commitment to seek the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons"—by reducing the role of nuclear weapons in U.S. national security strategy. President…
Issue Brief posted November 30, 2012 by Michaela Dodge
National Security: Independent Quadrennial Defense Review Panel Needed
In 2013, senior officials at the Pentagon will broadly examine U.S. national defense strategy, force posture, and weapons modernization in a congressionally mandated process called the Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR). The QDR establishes a defense planning program that will direct the Department of Defense’s budget and determine how many vehicles, tanks, ships, aircraft,…
Issue Brief posted September 20, 2012 by Baker Spring, Michaela Dodge
The Folly of the State Department’s Assessment of U.S. Arms Control Compliance
The State Department recently released its 2012 report, Adherence to and Compliance with Arms Control, Nonproliferation, and Disarmament Agreements and Commitments, or Annual Compliance Report. It informs Congress and the public about how the United States and other countries are fulfilling their multilateral and bilateral treaty obligations regarding arms control and…
Issue Brief posted September 11, 2012 by Baker Spring, Michaela Dodge
Annual Compliance Report: Lack of Clarity Damaging to U.S. Security
The State Department’s August 2012 report on Adherence to and Compliance with Arms Control, Nonproliferation, and Disarmament Agreements and Commitments (the so-called Annual Compliance Report) is an exercise in ambiguity which illustrates the difficulties involved in judging other countries’ compliance with multilateral and bilateral treaties related to weapons of mass…