Arms Control Wonk

Episode59 min

KCN-eh? October’s other North Korea Developments

A Canadian reviews the month’s North Korea news together with a special guest. Andrea and Ramon Pacheco-Pardo, the Korea Foundation-Free University Brussels Korea Chair, look at Pompeo’s latest visit to Pyongyang, examine the outcomes of Moon Jae-in’s European tour, and…

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Stuck on the Subcontinent

Quote of the week: “A diplomat who says “yes” means “maybe,” a diplomat who says “maybe” means “no,” and a diplomat who says “no” is no diplomat.” — Talleyrand Important diplomatic gears are stuck on the subcontinent. The Governments of India and…

Episode35 min

Pulling Out of the INF

The end of arms control, or a sub-culture run amok? In today’s special, live-recorded edition of the Arms Control Wonk podcast, Aaron and Jeffrey talk about the end of the INF, John Bolton’s motivations, and the reasons behind the US pull-out (aka…

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Weapons of Last Resort

Quotes of the week: “You use a small one, then you go to a bigger one. I think nuclear weapons are nuclear weapons and we need to draw the line there.”  — George Shultz “I don’t think there’s any such…

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“Subtle” DPRK Networks in Russia

A guest post by my colleague Cameron Trainer: Russia takes its commitment to enforcing United Nations sanctions on North Korea seriously. So seriously, in fact, that when Russian businesswoman Irina Tyan was listed in a NPR article as operating a…

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Missed Missiles: Finding a Failed Missile Test in India

Dave Schmerler, Michael Duitsman, and I were gathered around my computer, admiring satellite images we found of an Indian missile on a launch pad from May 2017. I pointed to some cloudy streaks on the screen and joked, “I wonder…

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Trashing the INF Treaty

Quote of the week: “Wake the damn Bambino. I’ll drill him in the ass.” — Attributed to Pedro Martinez, 2004, the year when the Red Sox broke the curse of not winning a World Series after trading Babe Ruth to…

Episode32 min

A Future for Arms Control?

Aaron and Jeffrey return to the topic to discuss the potential for a New Start extension and what it could mean for the future of the US-Russian relationship.  

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No First Use

Quotes of the week: “We are come to make a choice between the quick and the dead.” — Bernard Baruch before the United Nations Atomic Energy Commission, June 14, 1946. “To be quick in pulling the nuclear trigger is to…