Department of Defense

  • Nuclear Titanic

    Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel has ordered two reviews of America's nuclear force in the wake of mounting reports of drug use, drinking, womanizing, cheating and lapsed discipline among top officers. But if the studies focus only on personnel, it will be little more than rearranging the deck chairs on a nuclear Titanic. The core problem is not the people; it's the mission.

    January 24, 2014 - By Joe Cirincione

  • The Gold Standard of Nuclear Spending

    When we published our infographic demonstrating that planned replacements for the B-61 bombs would be worth more than the bomb’s actual weight in gold, we were reminded that the argument had been used before – by one of our most stalwart supporters.

    July 10, 2013 - By Elizabeth Warner

  • The President's Prague Agenda on the Brink

    On Thursday, Rachel Maddow asked me if President Obama was going to fulfill the visionary agenda he laid out four years ago in Prague. I paused. What should I say? I support this agenda to move us step by step towards what Obama termed "the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons." But progress has been slow. I took a deep breath and answered the only way I could: honestly.

    April 5, 2013 - By Joe Cirincione

  • Obama's Turn on Nuclear Weapons

    When U.S. President Barack Obama took to the podium during a rare visit to the Pentagon early last month, he announced a new strategy for the country's military posture abroad. The United States would shift from being able to fight two major wars simultaneously to increasing its focus on Asia. But the president also explained that reductions in the U.S. nuclear arsenal would be key to future defense: "We will continue to get rid of outdated Cold War-era systems," he said, "so that we can invest in the capabilities we need for the future."

    February 2, 2012 - By Joe Cirincione

  • More Light on Nuclear Budget Numbers

    This week, a lively debate has broken out around how much our nation actually spends on maintaining our nation's nuclear arsenal. It's a refreshing level of scrutiny on a pocket of  spending that has been largely unaccountable. 

    December 1, 2011 - By admin

  • A Credible Number, A Needed Debate

    There is no official number that tells American citizens how much our government is spending on nuclear weapons. In fact, we are not even precisely sure how many nuclear weapons we have.

    November 30, 2011 - By Joe Cirincione

  • Nuclear budget cuts gaining momentum

    Just months ago, nuclear weapons spending was considered untouchable. Now, rumblings from within the Pentagon indicate that the nuclear budget may be up next in the search for savings. When the Pentagon starts talking cuts, you know things are serious.

    November 17, 2011 - By Mary Kaszynski

  • The Budget Crisis Offers Opportunity To Bend The Arc Of Nuclear Policy

    The U.S. government spends $54 billion a year on nuclear weapons and related programs. Despite the deep fiscal crisis, these budgets are about to go up — to a whopping $700 billion over the next 10 years. It is not at all clear why.

    August 11, 2011 - By Joe Cirincione

  • Cutting Where It Counts

     In January, then-Secretary of Defense Robert Gates warned us that government’s fiscal management might at some point become one of the nation’s largest threats to national security:

    August 9, 2011 - By Margaret Swink

  • A Warhead’s Life

    The U.S. currently possesses nearly half of the world’s nuclear warheads. Each warhead type has its own story and takes its own path through the system. All of these warheads are born in the Department of Energy (DoE) and then reside with the Department of Defense (DoD). Many warheads eventually return to the DoE for dismantlement but some become “trapped” in the DoD through a seemingly endless cycle of upgrades, redeployments or storage in the stockpile.

    Below is an attempt to trace the path a warhead may take as it moves through the phases of its life-cycle (full view).

    August 5, 2011 - By Peter Fedewa