The framework agreement reached by the United States and its negotiating partners with Iran is a significant accomplishment, imposing substantial constraints on Tehran’s ability to make nuclear weapons. If it is finalized, only one other executive agreement dealing with nuclear weapons will have been more consequential — the first Strategic Arms Limitation accord negotiated by …
The Gift of Meaningful Work
by | 2015-04-02 | 6 Comments
On March 24th, the Carnegie Endowment gifted me with the Thérèse Delpech award. In thinking about what to say about this honor, I gravitated toward the twin themes of meaningful work and gift-giving, which is another, less taxing way to think about the hard slog of our daily pursuits. A video of my remarks can be …
Nuclear Chain Nonsense
by | 2015-03-31 | 5 Comments
The sky is falling! The United States is about to knock over the first domino and start the nuclear proliferation chain reaction in the Middle East. With the region at war, the argument goes, the American attempt to negotiate with Iran over its previous nuclear weapons work (and current nuclear infrastructure) is painfully naïve, and …
References to 1987 IDA Report
by | 2015-03-30 | 13 Comments
I have a new column at ForeignPolicy.com about the 1987 Institute for Defense Analyses report, IDA Memorandum, Report M-317 Critical Technology Assessment in Israel and NATO Nations. The report is now widely available online, but copies have been floating around for years. The picture atop the post is my copy. (You can tell the provenance …
