James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies (CNS)
CNS News & Views:
November 2017
 
Melissa Hanham, Jeffrey Lewis, and Shea Cotton listen as Dave Schmerler--a researcher nicknamed "Geolocation Jesus" by Lewis-- uses satellite images and 3D models to locate the sites of North Korea's nuclear and missile program.
Washington Post feature on CNS Researchers
Post Bureau Chief Anna Fifield visited the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey for a close-up, first-hand look at how CNS researchers use open-source technology "to do the kind of work previously the preserve of intelligence agencies and, in the process, learn all sorts of things about one of the most impenetrable countries in the world"-- North Korea. 

Senior NPT Diplomats Debate What to Expect at the Next PrepCom

CNS partnered with the Permanent Mission of Austria to the United Nations to co-host an off-record roundtable discussion on "The 2018 NPT PrepCom: Looking for Common Ground." 

Approximately three dozen senior diplomats from both nuclear-weapon states and non-nuclear-weapon states joined the dialogue, which was chaired by CNS Director William Potter.
Soviet Bunker No. 42
US-Russian Dialogue on Strategic Stability

For the fourth in a series of workshops co-organized by CNS and the Moscow-based Center for Energy and Security Studies, US and Russian experts gathered for a track 1.5 dialogue on strategic stability in bilateral relations. 

The meeting was held in a Soviet-era command-and-control bunker sixty-five meters underground, and included a working lunch featuring a discussion with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov, who had attended two previous workshops in Monterey and Moscow. 


Victor Esin of NTI and Bill Potter of CNS. Image credit: Luxembourg Forum
Leading Experts on Nonproliferation and Disarmament Convene in Paris

CNS Director William C. Potter delivered a presentation at the 10th Anniversary Conference of the International Luxembourg Forum on Preventing Nuclear Catastrophe, held in Paris. 

Other speakers at the conference included former Secretary of Defense William Perry, former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, NTI Vice Chairman Des Browne, former IAEA Director-General Hans Blix, former Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov, former Pugwash President Jayantha Dhanapala, and many other eminent scholars, officials, and military personnel. 


How did North Korea Build the Bomb?
On the latest episode of its series, Asian Century, Channel News Asia interviews Senior Research Associate Melissa Hanham for her insights into how the secluded regime begged, borrowed, and stole its way toward becoming a nuclear-armed country.

And to better understand the reach of North Korea's missile capability, check out this new graphic produced in collaboration with our partners at the Nuclear Threat Initiative.

New 3D Video Highlights Developments at Iranian Space Launch Center

In partnership with the Nuclear Threat Initiative, CNS produced a new  3D facility video , highlighting developments at the Imam Khomeini Space Launch Center. This site was re-opened in July 2017 after the successful test of a Simorgh Satellite Launch Vehicle. 

The new video analyzes recent trends in Iran's missile and space launch vehicle program, which indicate that Iran is focused on further developing it peaceful space launch capability, and that the Iran nuclear agreement may have helped redirect the focus of the country's missile program from developing longer range missiles to expanding shorter range conventional capabilities. 

Learn More.

First Giving Thanks, Then Giving Tuesday
At a time when so little in the world can be predicted, the value of education endures. 

Shared understandings, objective, fact-based findings, and practical solutions to global challenges of WMD proliferation are the daily pursuits of the CNS team of researchers, staff, and students. 

Every day, CNS is actively shaping the field of nonproliferation studies and policy. From innovative uses of new technologies in 3D modeling, geospatial imaging, and social network analysis to our sustained belief in and practice of diplomacy and negotiation, and, most importantly, imparting these practices to the next generation of nonproliferation specialists, CNS continues to have a real-world impact.

On Giving Tuesday, November 28, please consider making a contribution in support of our work here at CNS. Your investment will have multiplier effects across generations and regions, enabling us to meet new challenging developments in WMD proliferation, no matter how unpredictable.

Thank you sincerely for your support.