News & Views: January 2016
CNS Breaks Story on North Korea Doctored Missile Test Footage
A still image from the North Korea video released last Friday purportedly showing a submarine-launched ballistic missile test. Analysis by experts at CNS has shown the video was manipulated to cover up a failed test launch.
A still image from the North Korea video released last Friday purportedly showing a submarine-launched ballistic missile test. 

CNS analysis makes headlines across the globe

After testing a nuclear weapon for the fourth time earlier this month, North Korea released a video purportedly showing the firing of a submarine-launched ballistic missile. A team of CNS experts, led by Research Associate Catherine Dill, carefully analyzed the footage and determined that it had been manipulated to cover up a catastrophic failure. 

The analysis was widely picked up by the media, including a broadcast by CNN, both in the United States and CNN International. 

The Next Phase of the Iran Deal

IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano briefs international press and media during the November 2013 Board of Governors meeting.
 

CNS continues to provide insider analysis as Iran deal becomes reality

This month, a new report from the International Atomic Energy Agency effectively terminated UN sanctions on Iran, with the exception of those on missile and arms sales.

While not all issues have been resolved-- including those related to "possible military dimensions" of Iran's nuclear program-- the lifting of sanctions signals the official "Implementation Day" of the deal. VCDNP Executive Director Laura Rockwood, former senior IAEA official, explains what this new report means-- and what it doesn't mean.

  Read more .
Behavioral Economics and Nuclear Weapons
Psychology and neuroscience offer keen insights into nuclear proliferation


Jeffrey Knopf
 
The Washington, DC, office of the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies (CNS) hosted a workshop organized by Jeffrey Knopf, Anne Harrington, and Miles Pomper to explore the implications of research in behavioral economics for policy issues related to nuclear weapons. 

The field of behavioral economics has drawn on research in psychology and neuroscience and its own experiments to identify patterns in human decision making that systematically deviate from the predictions of rational actor models. The workshop participants came from several different countries and reflected a mix of academic and think tank affiliations. Participants presented papers on topics ranging from deterrence to the nonproliferation regime to case studies of individual countries. This report summarizes the workshop discussions and the conclusions drawn by the three organizers. 

Read the report.
New Dual-Degree Program with Russian University

Joint studies in nonproliferation, terrorism, and international affairs to begin in 2016

Free image courtesy of Pixabay
The  Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey (MIIS) is launching a new dual-degree program with Russian University,  MGIMO (the Moscow State Institute of International Relations), focused on nonproliferation studies. Under the initiative, students will enroll in the MA program in  Nonproliferation and Terrorism Studies at MIIS and in the MA program in International Affairs at MGIMO.

The program will be supported by experts from the Center for Nonproliferation Studies at MIIS and the Moscow-based  PIR Center. Under this four-semester program, students will spend the first semester in Moscow, the next two semesters in Monterey, and will do an internship and complete a thesis in the final semester. The two schools are working to set up an application procedure that will enable the first cohort to begin the dual-degree program in fall 2016.

Whether you are an alum, a colleague, or an engaged citizen with a passion for nonproliferation, consider showing your support for the work of CNS by donating today. Thank you.


James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies
+1 (831) 647-4154
cns@miis.edu
http://nonproliferation.org
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