James Graham Wilson: The House of Dynamite We Forgot: And What We Can Learn From Nuclear History
In a new essay for the Outrider Foundation, historian at the U.S. Department of State James Graham Wilson quotes declassified documents from a recently published volume of the Foreign Relations of the United States (FRUS) series to highlight the importance of preserving human oversight in the command, control, and communication infrastructure for nuclear weapons. “Human agency,” Wilson stresses, “kept the House of Dynamite from exploding during 1979–1980 and throughout the Cold War.”
U.S.-Iran Talks End After ‘Significant Progress’, mediator says
As the latest round of U.S.-Iran negotiations concluded in Geneva, Switzerland on Thursday, February 26, mediator Badr Albusaidi, Oman’s foreign minister, told reporters that the two sides planned to resume talks “soon” after consultations with their governments. According to reports, officials of both sides are believed to have offered concessions, although the proposals have not been made public.
Sarah Rosa: Not A Moment Too Soon, California Moves to Embrace Nuclear Energy
A bipartisan group of California state lawmakers introduced legislation to exempt nuclear reactors approved by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) since 2005 from California’s 50-year-old moratorium on new nuclear builds. This would include reactors using Westinghouse’s AP1000 design, the “safest and most reliable plant in the marketplace.”
Croatia Aims for 30% Nuclear Energy By 2040
The Croatian government has sent a draft law which supports the expansion of the Balkan country’s nuclear energy capacity to the country’s parliament. Economy Minister Ante Šušnjar said: “The goal is for nuclear energy to participate in at least 30% of the total energy mix by 2040. With this law, Croatia not only chooses a new source of energy, but makes a strategic decision that confirms its commitment to energy security, climate responsibility and technological progress.”
Podcast of the Week: Lucas
This week, I listened to the new episode of the Security Dilemma podcast where hosts A.J. Manuzzi and John Gay discussed the state of nuclear arms control after the expiration of New START, nuclear proliferation cascades, and whether sanctions can prevent nuclear proliferation with Dr. Ariel Petrovics. Dr. Petrovics is a visiting scholar at the University of Denver’s Josef Korbel School of International Studies, non-resident fellow with the Quincy institute, a research associate at the University of Maryland School of Public Policy, and a co-editor of the new book Atomic Backfires: When Nuclear Policies Fail, published by MIT Press.