Simon Saradzhyan
Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
Contact:
Telephone: 617-496-8228
Email: simon_saradzhyan@hks.harvard.edu
AP Photo
February 12, 2012
"Creating a Culture of Giving"
Op-Ed, Moscow Times
By Simon Saradzhyan, Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
It is a truism that rapid accumulation of wealth by a privileged minority is bound to generate lasting resentment by the majority. It is the latter that presidential candidate Vladimir Putin decided to use as a campaign issue when he announced last week that Russia's business tycoons should pay a fee to win public acceptance of privatization deals they benefited from in the 1990s.
Read more:http://www.themoscowtimes.com/opinion/article/creating-a-culture-of-giving/452896.html#ixzz1mHIcXpxf
The Moscow Times
December 20, 2011
"Mutually Assured Stability"
Op-Ed, Moscow Times
By Simon Saradzhyan, Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
"Fall 1991 saw U.S. and Soviet leaders display goodwill by pledging to unilaterally consolidate and reduce their nations' arsenals of tactical nuclear weapons in what became the last milestone in the history of U.S.-Soviet arms control....Twenty years after, however, the two countries still have thousands of tactical nuclear weapons outside any of the existing international arms control regimes," writes Simon Saradzhyan
(AP Photo/ RIA Novosti, Yekaterina Shtukina. pool)
October 5, 2011
"Putin's Comeback: Fast Forward to the Past"
Op-Ed, International Relations and Security Network
By Simon Saradzhyan, Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and President Dmitry Medvedev’s decision to swap jobs may put an end to the diarchy in Russia but is unlikely to lead to any tectonic policy shifts, writes Simon Saradzhyan. Instead, it will further cement the system of ‘managed democracy’, which in time will become so inflexible that it may fail to cope with a protracted crisis.
(AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
June 14, 2011
"A Historic Opportunity for Missile Defense"
Op-Ed, International Relations and Security Network
By Simon Saradzhyan, Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
NATO and Russia continue to disagree about binding constraints on ballistic missile defense in Europe. One way out of this stalemate could be for Russia and NATO to conclude a new Founding Act on missile defense cooperation that would contain mutual pledges of non-targeting, but will not require ratification.
(AP Photo)
March 30, 2011
"Russia: Conscription Crisis Looming?"
Op-Ed, International Relations and Security Network
By Simon Saradzhyan, Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
The conscription model of the Russian armed forces is unsustainable, and the country’s military planners will either have to recruit older men and cancel exemptions or recruit more professional soldiers in the future. The latter is preferable given that skilled rank-and-file will be needed to operate sophisticated weapons systems that the Russian military plans to acquire in the next decade.
(AP Photo)
March 28, 2011
"A Silver Bullet for the Reset"
Op-Ed, Moscow Times
By Simon Saradzhyan, Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
At the November NATO summit in Lisbon, Russia and the alliance set June as a deadline to make progress in developing a framework for cooperating on missile defense. If an agreement is reached, it could become a game-changer in Russia’s relations with the United States and its NATO allies.
AP Photo
March 22, 2011
"Russia Presses Ahead With Nuclear Plants After Japan Crisis"
Op-Ed, The Huffington Post
By Simon Saradzhyan, Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
While Russian authorities saw the recent calamities in Japan as a chance to initiate a rapprochement with the country, says Simon Saradzhyan, Moscow's overtures to Tokyo have received a cool reception. However, he says, "Japan's nuclear crisis nonetheless represents an opportunity for Russian policy-makers to take a fresh look at the country's nuclear energy policies in order to ensure that both existing and future plants are protected against natural or man-made calamities, even those that may still seem unthinkable."
(AP Photo)
February 22, 2011
"Russia: Looking Ahead"
Op-Ed, International Relations and Security Network
By Simon Saradzhyan, Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs and Nabi Abdullaev
Putin and Medvedev will remain at the political helm throughout 2011 – and most likely beyond. In addition to thorny questions of leadership, however, political, economic and foreign policy harbingers will prove vital in determining the course of the country in the coming years. But what elements in particular will prove decisive, and what ‘unknowns’ should be on our radar?
March 16, 2011
The Global Future of Nuclear Power After Fukushima
Op-Ed
By Martin B. Malin, Executive Director, Project on Managing the Atom, Yun Zhou, Research Fellow, Project on Managing the Atom/International Security Program, Simon Saradzhyan, Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Sungyeol Choi, Former Research Fellow, International Security Program/Project on Managing the Atom, 2010–2012, Karthika Sasikumar, Former Stanton Nuclear Security Junior Faculty Fellow, International Security Program/Project on Managing the Atom, 2010–2011; Former Associate, International Security Program, 2008–2009 and Mahsa Rouhi, Associate, Project on Managing the Atom/International Security Program
The crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in Japan is sending shockwaves through nuclear planning agencies around the world. Policy makers are asking for reviews of safety regulations, publics are expressing concern, and it appears likely that some of the planned construction will be curtailed. These commentaries offer sketches of how the discussion of nuclear energy is unfolding in key countries where plans for growth are most significant.
(AP Photo/Misha Japaridze)
January 27, 2011
"From Toilet to Airport"
Op-Ed, Moscow Times
By Simon Saradzhyan, Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
"Russia continues to suffer from the deadly menace of indigenous terrorism. Monday’s suicide bombing at Moscow’s busiest airport has become the latest tragedy," writes Belfer Center Fellow Simon Saradzhyan.
