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William H. Tobey

William H. Tobey

Senior Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs

Contact:
Telephone: 617-496-0518
Fax: 617-495-8963
Email: william_tobey@hks.harvard.edu

 

 

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Nuclear weapons (continued)

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April 7, 2010

"It's Folly Not to Update Nuclear Arsenal"

Op-Ed, CNN.com

By William H. Tobey, Senior Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs

"Indeed, the 2010 Posture Review cites nuclear terrorism as the foremost threat we face. We now require and can design greater margins for safety and security. Refusing even to consider designs that might respond to these developments is breathtakingly Luddite. The tools of science are fundamental to nuclear safety and security; ruling out new designs is the triumph of ideology over science."

 

 

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September 4, 2009

"Is Moscow Playing a Double Game on Iran's Nukes?"

Op-Ed, Foreign Policy

By William H. Tobey, Senior Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs

"The U.S. approach to Iran's nuclear program has long been built on the assumption that Russia's influence in Iran is key to reaching a solution. Indeed, as Iran's primary nuclear technology supplier, and one of its leading trade partners, Moscow would appear to have powerful leverage in Tehran. But the United States may be basing its policy on an illusion, for the Russians could be playing a double game."

 

 

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June 11, 2009

Observations on the Recent United Nations Security Council Resolution on North Korea

News

By William H. Tobey, Senior Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs

On June 12, 2009, the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 1874 in response to recent provocative actions by North Korea, including a second nuclear test. Chinese and Russian support for a new U.N. Security Council resolution that imposes additional sanctions is potentially significant. However, whether China in particular will support tough implementation of the resolution and will take a harder line in its bilateral relations with North Korea remains to be seen, and will ultimately determine the success or failure of efforts to reverse North Korea's nuclear weapons program.

 

 

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May 20, 2009

"The Real Threat From North Korea"

Op-Ed, CBSNews.com

By William H. Tobey, Senior Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs

"The covert nuclear cooperation between Syria and North Korea fundamentally changes the threat posed by the North Korean nuclear program."

 

 

AP Photo

March 11, 2009

"Iran's Nuclear Deception"

Op-Ed, Boston Globe

By William H. Tobey, Senior Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs

"We probably will never know whether the case of the found enriched uranium was a mistake or a feint. That uncertainty, however, and the horrible consequences of a significant lapse in our ability to monitor Iran's nuclear program should lead the IAEA, the Obama administration, and our European negotiating partners to exercise great caution in considering proposals that would depend on intricate and foolproof verification schemes."

 

 

January 29, 2009

William H. Tobey Named Senior Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs

Press Release

By Sharon Wilke, Associate Director of Communications and William H. Tobey, Senior Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs

William H. Tobey, deputy administrator for Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation at the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) from 2006 to 2009 and a Harvard Kennedy School graduate (MPP ‘84), will start February 2nd as a senior fellow at the Kennedy School’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, where he will work with the Center’s nuclear team.

 

June 11, 2012

"The Special Senate Committee on Anti-terrorism"

Testimony

By William H. Tobey, Senior Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Matthew Bunn, Associate Professor of Public Policy; Co-Principal Investigator, Project on Managing the Atom and Simon Saradzhyan, Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs

On June 11, 2012, the Belfer Center's William Tobey, Matthew Bunn and Simon Saradzhyan testified before Canada's upper house of parliament, the Senate, on the threat of nuclear terrorism and strategies to combat it.

 

 

AP Photo

January/ February 2012

"Nuclear Scientists as Assassination Targets"

Journal Article, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, issue 1, volume 68

By William H. Tobey, Senior Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs

Since 2007, international media have reported the violent deaths of four scientists and engineers connected with Iran’s nuclear program and an attempt on the life of a fifth. The news reports on such killings are murky, incomplete, and, in some instances, likely inaccurate...

 

 

May 2011

Limiting Transfers of Enrichment and Reprocessing Technology: Issues, Constraints, Options

Report

By Fred McGoldrick, Associate, Project on Managing the Atom, Matthew Bunn, Associate Professor of Public Policy; Co-Principal Investigator, Project on Managing the Atom, Martin B. Malin, Executive Director, Project on Managing the Atom and William H. Tobey, Senior Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs

Fred McGoldrick authored a report, entitled "Limiting Transfers of Enrichment and Reprocessing Technology: Issues, Constraints, Options" that provides an informed analysis and set of recommendations on how to strengthen restraints on the transfer of enrichment and reprocessing technologies in a manner that would be acceptable to all Nuclear Suppliers Group members, and would be credible to the major exporting states and industry.

 

 

April 13, 2009

"U.S. Needs Better System for Securing Radioactive Material"

Op-Ed, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs

By William H. Tobey, Senior Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs

William H. Tobey, senior fellow with the Belfer Center, argues that if we are to make a lasting improvement in our efforts to prevent a dirty bomb attack, we need a better system for regulating the security and disposition of radiological sources. Tobey says the Nuclear Regulatory Commission should take two actions: establish the bona fides of all purchasers of radiological sources before issuing a permit; and require a deposit equal to the likely cost of safe disposition, to be refunded once disposition is complete.

 

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