Authors

Jeffrey Lewis

Writing on ACW 2004–2026 · 2,079 posts

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Anon O’Moose on Missile Defense

One of our more engaged commentators sent along the following open letter to Representative Michael Turner (R-OH), commenting on some of the more interesting statements in his latest letter to the President Barack Obama.  He chose the nom de plume…

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Syria and Sarin

A few thoughts on where we are with the allegations of chemical weapons use in Syria.

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North Korea’s Nuclear Arsenal: Guide for the Perplexed

So, has North Korea’s Sputnik moment arrived at last? After Pyongyang’s first successful space launch in December, its third nuclear test in February, and a barrage of threats — including the recent matter of a map purporting to show targets…

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North Korean Targeting

Greetings from the old #nukefest2013. For my regular column at Foreign Policy last week, I pondered the meaning of Kim Jong Un’s Map of Death.  In that post, I made some simple estimates of the four targets: If one has…

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No More 721 Reports

The FY 2013 Intelligence Authorization Act repeals the requirement for “721 Reports” — officially known as the biannual Unclassified Report to Congress on the Acquisition of Technology Relating to Weapons of Mass Destruction and Advanced Conventional Munitions. This is a terrible decision.…

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Writing on the Wall

You know who tries to deter cyber-attacks with nuclear weapons?  North Korea, that’s who. North Korea released a statement that Kim Jong Il had “ratified the plan of the Strategic Rocket Force for firepower strike” against “the U.S. mainland, their…

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Pierre Noir, Again

About a year ago, I wrote about the case of Pierre Noir, the first IAEA inspector to die on the job.  Noir died of a heart attack while inspecting a nuclear reactor in Taiwan on January 30, 1978.  I am…

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Show and TEL

The most rewarding aspect of the Monterey Institute is the students.  Okay, it’s the weather.  But the students are a close second. We have, for instance, an embarrassment of Chinese-speaking graduate students.  One of our best, Jonathan Ray, has been…

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Ring Magnets

Last month, David Albright published screen shots of a solicitation by an Iranian company for ring magnets that may suitable for centrifuge bearings – a crucial component of Iran’s centrifuges. The question is whether the magnets, which fall below the…

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Shoot-Look-Shoot

I have a column up at Foreign Policy (“Billion Dollar Baby”) on the announcement by newly installed SECDEF Chuck Hagel that 14 additional ground-based interceptors ought to do it with regard to North Korea.  I noted in the piece that…