Arms Control Wonk

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News & Politics
**Arms Control Wonk**

The nuclear weapons, arms control, disarmament and nonproliferation podcast. Companion to the popular Arms Control Wonk blog (www.armscontrolwonk.com). Hosted by Jeffrey Lewis & Aaron Stein.

Latest Episodes:

Iran's Once in a Lifetime Moment Apr 17, 2024

Show notes

And you may find yourself not complying with the IAEA

And you may find yourself in a war in another part of the world

And you may find yourself making a metaphor about an automobile

And you may find yourself enriching your uranium stocks, and building reactors

And you may ask yourself "Well, how did I get here?"

Letting the days go by, politics will hold you down

Letting the days go by, heavy water underground

Into Fordow again, maybe to Isfahan

Once in a lifetime, realignment all around

Same as it ever was, Same as it ever was

Jeffrey and Aaron go through the current state of play in Iranian politics (just prior to its massive missile strike on Israel), particularly around the nuclear program and what the bomb genuinely means for security and Iranian internal politics, and review how we got here over the past 20 years of Arms Control Wonkery.

Support us over at Patreon.com/acwpodcast!

Russian Nuclear Doctrine in the Financial Times 2: A Conversation with William Alberque Apr 10, 2024

Show notes

William Alberque joins Jeffrey for a friendly and deep debate about the Russian Navy nuclear documents leaked to FT, covered in our previous episode.

This is a fascinating discussion not only on the documents themselves, but what they imply for Russia's view of its own territorial integrity, what it needs to convince its soldiers to go to bat for, and the eternal issues of "self-deterrence".

Support us over at Patreon.com/acwpodcast!

Russian Nuclear Doctrine in the Financial Times Mar 10, 2024

Show notes

Max Seddon and Chris Cook with the Financial Times have written an excellent piece on leaked Russian Naval documents that FT saw, focused on thresholds for Russian nuclear use, especially in a war scenario with China.

Jeffrey and Aaron go through what the documents reveal and debate if they're generally consistant with what is understood about Russian nuclear doctrine or, as FT states, indicate that the threshold is lower than previous understood.

Support us over at Patreon.com/acwpodcast!

Jeffrey Visits the Test Site Feb 19, 2024

Show notes

Road trip to Vegas.

As part of an NGO transparency visit, NNSA opened up the Nevada Test Site to a group of international nuclear weapons experts, including one Dr. Jeffrey Lewis.

Jeffrey goes through what he saw: P Tunnel, The BEEF, and the crown jewel, U1a. This was an NNSA exercise in transparency, aimed at showing the community and world that the U.S. stockpile stewardship and treaty verification exercises are separate from nuclear explosive tests. It was also, and we cannot underline this enough, extremely cool.

Support us over at Patreon.com/acwpodcast!

Russia Buys North Korean Missiles Jan 17, 2024

Show notes

Shoigu went shopping.

Russia is buying KN-23 and KN-25 missiles from North Korea and launching them in support of its invasion of Ukraine. Imagery from on the ground clearly shows North Korean style solid-propellant missiles.

Jeffrey and Aaron talk about what this means for global ballistic missile proliferation, possible South Korean responses, and the continued rise of North Korea as a ballistic missile exporter.

Support us over at Patreon.com/acwpodcast!

North Korea's New Satellite Nov 28, 2023

Show notes

North Korea finally got a reconnaissance satellite into orbit, after several failed prior attempts! While it is a little rough around the edges, every program has to start somewhere.

Jeffrey and Aaron talk through the implications of the DPRK's reconnaissance satellite, the relationship of the DPRK missile and space programs, and the importance of high fashion for the spacelaunching elites.

Support us over at Patreon.com/acwpodcast!

The Reason We're all Still Here Oct 14, 2023

Show notes

Take a listen to the latest season of Jeffrey Lewis's podcast, The Reason We're All Still Here

Far too often, governments behave like toddlers. They're fickle. They don't like to share. And good luck getting them to pay attention to any problem that isn't directly in front of them. They like to push each other to the brink, and often do. But when they don't, it's usually because other people enter the proverbial room. Private citizens who step up and play peacemaker when their governments won't or can't. People who strive for collaboration and understanding, and sometimes end up finding it in unlikely places. Those people and the work they do, they're the reason we're all still here.

This season, we'll hear from scientists, analysts, and idealists who have gone to crazy lengths just for a shot at making peace and building understanding From smoke-filled rooms in North Korea to secret labs in the Soviet Union… to the lawless seas, and even to the depths of outer space (or, at least, the conference rooms where they talk about the depths of outer space). This podcast tells the stories about the people holding us back from the brink.

Hosted by Dr. Jeffrey Lewis, a professor and scholar at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies on the Nonproliferation and Terrorism Studies faculty. Previously, he served as Director of the Nuclear Strategy and Nonproliferation Initiative at the New America Foundation and Executive Director of the Managing the Atom Project at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard University. He is the founder of ArmsControlWonk.com, a leading resource on disarmament, arms control and nonproliferation issues.

Produced by Gilded Audio and the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies

Shenanigans in Novaya Zemlya Oct 11, 2023

Show notes

Looks like everyone is preparing for a party.

Between Russia's potential un-signing of a nuclear test treaty, threats to test "if the United States does," and refurbishments at Novaya Zemlya, things aren't looking great for the longevity of nuclear test ban norms. China and the U.S. have been modernizing too, though the U.S. has offered to allow monitors on-site to verify U.S. lack of testing.

Jeffrey and Aaron sit down to talk about the recent developments in Russia, and the likelyhood that there will be a return to explosive nuclear testing in the future.

The Era Without Arms Control continues, and threatens to deepen.

Support us over at Patreon.com/acwpodcast!

Kim Jong Un's Excellent Adventure Aug 17, 2023

Show notes

Sam Lair joins the podcast to talk about Kim Jong Un's recent whirlwind tour of the North Korean Defense Industrial Base with Jeffrey and Scott.

If you're into missiles, geolocation, and machine tools (and, if you listen to this podcast, you probably are), you're going to want to tune in.

Sam and Jeffrey have been mapping out the DPRK DIB, including plant managers, machine tool lineages, production lines, and evolutions over time. Kim's visit to these plants, and the accompanying KCNA imagery storm, unlocked a trove of new information about where nuclear delivery systems are produced and maintained, and updated our ideas for how big the arsenal may be.

Support us over at Patreon.com/acwpodcast!

Oppenheimer Aug 07, 2023

Show notes

Jeffrey is joined by the illustrious Kelsey Atherton to discuss Christopher Nolan's film Oppenheimer, as well as the history and legacy of the titular man himself. Kelsey and Jeffrey dive into the choice to focus on Oppenheimer's own security legacy and bypass the direct and indirect horrors affected upon the Congolese miners, New Mexicans, and Japanese civilians, as well as the intentional rendering of power politics and personal animus within the U.S. security apparatus.

Kelsey penned a companion piece over at the Arms Control Wonk Blog, talking about the wider related experience of watching Barbie and Oppenheimer in the same day.

Support us over at Patreon.com/acwpodcast!