In January 2017, Democratic Senator Ed Markey and Representative Ted Lieu introduced the Restricting First Use of Nuclear Weapons Act 2017 in both houses of Congress. Should the UK follow suit?
Budgeting for Bombs: The Difficulties of Getting Nuclear Modernisation through Congress
On Monday 17th April, US Secretary of Defence James Mattis announced that the United States Nuclear Posture Review had officially begun and will be completed by the end of the year.
Struggling to Signal: Trump’s Dilemma with Arms Control Diplomacy: 18th April 2017
Some believe the world is a safer place with Trump in the White House.
US and the INF Treaty: Testing NATO: 3rd April 2017
The US response to Russia’s supposed violation of the INF Treaty is a litmus test for the Trump administration’s approach to arms controls and strategic stability. It will give a clear indication of the Administration’s attitude towards relations with Russia, its NATO allies and to arms control more generally.
The First Trends of Trump’s Nuclear Policy Emerge: 27 March 2017
As the Senior Director for Weapons of Mass Destruction and Counter-Proliferation of the National Security Council, Chris Ford plays perhaps the most important role in the US Government for defining the Trump Administration’s upcoming Nuclear Posture Review.
Nuclear Ascendency: The Emerging Importance of Nuclear Weapons for Trump’s Foreign Policy Coalition: 8 March 2017
Some clarity has started to emerge on how important the military and nuclear weapons are to the new administration. On 28th February, Trump announced a ‘historic increase in defense spending to rebuild the depleted military,’ and reports talked of a 10% increase. His billion budget is to be funded by cuts to the State Department and US foreign aid. And the White House is expected to publish detailed proposals by the end of March.
Trump’s Nuclear Rhetoric and its implications for European Security: 27 Feb 2017
Trump’s Nuclear Rhetoric and its implications for European Security
Further questions were raised over the direction of US nuclear posture review last week. In an exclusive interview with Reuters, Trump opined that the US has 'fallen behind on nuclear weapon capacity' and pledged the US to be 'top of the pack' when it comes to nuclear weapons.