10 Big Nuclear Ideas

Some of the US’s top global security minds have outlined their vision in the Ploughshares Fund report, “10 Big Ideas for the Next President”, to help guide the new administration on how to best protect the world from nuclear weapons threats.

Published one week after the 2016 presidential election, the report (pdf version here) contains groundbreaking essays and policy recommendations from a wide range of experts, from Senator Dianne Feinstein and former Secretary of Defense William J. Perry to former CIA operative Valerie Plame and the former commander of our nuclear arsenal, retired Gen. James Cartwright, among others.

The 10 Big Nuclear Ideas

Ban Production of Highly Enriched Uranium

The continued production of highly enriched uranium (HEU) for any purpose poses a significant threat to international security. Nations that want to acquire nuclear weapons could seek to do so under the cover of HEU production for civilian research or naval propulsion. While it is essential to...

December 11, 2016 - By Ploughshares Fund
Support a Global Ban on Nuclear Weapons

Nuclear weapons continue to be one of the most serious threats to international peace and security around the world. They are the most destructive, inhumane and indiscriminate weapons ever created. Both in the scale of the devastation they cause, and in their uniquely persistent and hazardous...

November 15, 2016 - By Ploughshares Fund
Learn from Iran, Engage North Korea

Since official relations between Washington and Tehran were severed in 1980, five American presidents spanning a period of three decades — from Jimmy Carter to George W. Bush — have struggled to figure out how to deal with Iran. As a candidate for the presidency in 2007, then-Senator Barack...

November 15, 2016 - By Ploughshares Fund
Press Pause on Missile Defense in Europe

The Iran nuclear accord, concluded in July 2015, has fundamentally improved the outlook for European security. Iran is now much less likely to obtain nuclear warheads, and its missile programs are proceeding more slowly than expected. As a result, current US plans to build additional interceptor...

November 15, 2016 - By Ploughshares Fund
Bring Home US Tactical Nuclear Weapons from Europe

In the United States, anything nuclear is inherently presidential. Any change in nuclear policy requires presidential leadership and sustained engagement. Moreover, decisions to pursue new initiatives must be made early in a new administration, and then executed over a number of years. Coming...

November 15, 2016 - By Ploughshares Fund
Add Democracy to Nuclear Policy

The 2016 US presidential campaign has, among other things, reminded the public that the president has the sole authority to launch a nuclear attack. While public discussion focused on the temperament, judgment and character of the person occupying the office of the presidency, it has also raised...

November 15, 2016 - By Ploughshares Fund
Cancel the New Nuclear Cruise Missile

The Defense Department has proposed to build a new, powerful nuclear cruise missile called the Long-Range Standoff weapon (LRSO). In our opinion, this weapon is unnecessary, incredibly expensive and would move the United States closer to actually using a nuclear weapon — an unthinkable action....

November 15, 2016 - By Ploughshares Fund
Phase Out America’s ICBMs

Russia and the United States have started rebuilding their Cold War nuclear arsenals, putting us on the threshold of a new and dangerous arms race. But we don’t have to replay this drama. The US plan to rebuild and maintain its nuclear force is needlessly oversized and expensive, expected to...

November 15, 2016 - By Ploughshares Fund
Reduce the US Nuclear Arsenal, with or without Russia

Speaking in Berlin in 2013, President Barack Obama offered to reduce US deployed strategic nuclear forces to about 1,000 warheads, or one-third below the limits of the 2010 New START Treaty. This is sound policy, as the US military has determined that it can ensure the security of the United...

November 15, 2016 - By Ploughshares Fund
Break with Cold War Thinking

Dear 45th President, welcome to the White House. You now have an opportunity to make a lasting impact on national and international policy. But whatever your priorities may be — national security, education, immigration, the deficit or the environment — one issue can trump them all: nuclear...

November 15, 2016 - By Ploughshares Fund