Press Releases
June 6, 2003
Graham Allison Awarded Medal From Kazakhstan
By Graham Allison, Director, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs; Douglas Dillon Professor of Government, Harvard Kennedy School
On Harvard’s Commencement Day, following the Kennedy School’s diploma ceremony, Ambassador Kanat Saudabayev of Kazakhstan presented Dr. Graham Allison, Director of the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs and Chair of the Caspian Studies Program, with a special award from the President of Kazakhstan. The medal, called the Order of Dostik, or friendship, was bestowed on Dr. Allison by President Nursultan Nazarbayev for his work in the early 1990s to remove nuclear weapons from Kazakhstan and for his current support for students from Kazakhstan at the Kennedy School.
March 24, 2003
Are We Prepared for the Unthinkable? Graham Allison on Smallpox
By Graham Allison, Director, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs; Douglas Dillon Professor of Government, Harvard Kennedy School
Imagine you work in the governor’s office and are awakened with the news that three people in Washington, DC have just been diagnosed with smallpox. No one yet knows how they contracted the disease; but one of the afflicted had, on his way home from a business trip, stopped for the night in your state, where he visited clients, rode on public transportation, ate in a restaurant, and had a drink at a popular night spot. You learn that only 250 health workers in your state have been vaccinated against smallpox and are trained to inoculate others, while another 5,000 medical workers need to be vaccinated in order to implement your state’s response plan. The federal government can deliver the additional vaccine you need to get the job done, along with enough doses to vaccinate every resident in your state, but it will take a few days. Meanwhile, news of the smallpox infections is expected to leak to the press within hours. Decisions need to be made—now. What would you advise the governor to do? And, what would you advise your family to do?
January 20, 2003
Graham Allison to Speak on "Preventing Nuclear Terrorism" at US-Russia Security Program on January 20, 2003
By Graham Allison, Director, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs; Douglas Dillon Professor of Government, Harvard Kennedy School
Graham Allison to Speak on "Preventing Nuclear Terrorism" at US-Russia Security Program on January 20, 2003
May 22, 2002
Graham Allison: Scoring the Summit
By Graham Allison, Director, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs; Douglas Dillon Professor of Government, Harvard Kennedy School
When scoring Olympic events like diving or figure skating, judges first assess the difficulty of the maneuver before judging its execution. If we follow that practice in scoring this week's Moscow summit between Presidents George W. Bush and Vladimir Putin, what may first appear a flawless performance will actually fall far short of a perfect 10. The Bush administration has chosen to be cautious in its approach to the summit. In Olympic terms, the program never leaves the low diving board.
May 20, 2002
Graham Allison and Andrei Kokoshin: Bush and Putin Must Confront Nuclear Terror
By Graham Allison, Director, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs; Douglas Dillon Professor of Government, Harvard Kennedy School
The centerpiece of this week''s Moscow summit will be the signing of a treaty cutting the number of deployed strategic warheads by two-thirds over the next decade. But as both President Bush and Russian President Vladimir V. Putin have acknowledged, the agreement looks more to the Cold War than to future dangers. Especially in the aftermath of Sept. 11, their priority at this summit should be to act now to prevent nuclear terrorism.
January 6, 2002
Graham Allison: Kazakhstan's Antinuclear Role
By Graham Allison, Director, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs; Douglas Dillon Professor of Government, Harvard Kennedy School
WHEN KAZAKHSTAN is mentioned, most people think of one thing: oil. As the principal source of Caspian energy, Kazakhstan supplies world markets directly through the Caspian Pipeline Consortium. Opened in September, this pipeline has a capacity of 1 million barrels a day. Furthermore, Kashagan field has been acclaimed as the most significant new discovery of reserves in the past quarter-century. When President Bush met with Kazakhstan's President Nursultan Nazarbayev at the White House in December, they discussed Kazakhstan's new role in world energy and the campaign against terrorism. The meeting resulted in a joint statement that affirmed their strategic partnership and a US intention to help Kazakhstan integrate more fully into the global economy.
November 21, 2001
Graham Allison, Karl Kaiser, Sergei Karaganov: The World Needs a Global Alliance for Security
By Graham Allison, Director, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs; Douglas Dillon Professor of Government, Harvard Kennedy School
In the aftermath of September 11th, the authors propose that the world's greatest powers consider creating a new 'Global Alliance for Security.' Given the seriousness of the terrorist threat, the mission of this alliance would be to prevent and fight terrorism, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and the infrastructure of international criminal activities and drug traffic that feed terrorist networks. It would also address the causes of terrorism in failed or failing political regimes and societies.
November 20, 2001
Graham Allison: Preventing Terrorism in the Air: A How-to-guide for Nervous Airline Passengers
By Graham Allison, Director, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs; Douglas Dillon Professor of Government, Harvard Kennedy School
As Americans take to the airways for Thanksgiving, what responsibilities should passengers assume for securing the aircraft against terrorists? Flight attendants routinely instruct those who sit in emergency rows about their responsibilities in the case of an emergency. But what about a security emergency?
November 18, 2001
Graham Allison: Nuclear Terrorism: It's the Plutonium, Stupid
By Graham Allison, Director, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs; Douglas Dillon Professor of Government, Harvard Kennedy School
Osama bin Laden gave them the perfect opening. Just before President Bush welcomed Russian President Vladimir V. Putin to the White House for last week's summit, a Pakistani newspaper quoted the Al Qaeda leader claiming to have "chemical and nuclear weapons" and "the right to use them."
November 18, 2001
Graham Allison: We Must Act As If He Has The Bomb
By Graham Allison, Director, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs; Douglas Dillon Professor of Government, Harvard Kennedy School
The question is suddenly urgent: Could the inconceivable happen? President Bush has previously warned the world that Osama bin Laden is seeking to develop weapons of mass destruction. Now, bin Laden himself claims to have chemical and nuclear weapons -- and "the right to use them." We cannot know for certain whether he is bluffing, but Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge has confirmed that documents detailing how to make nuclear weapons have been found in an al Qaeda safe house in Kabul. And we can certainly expect that as the noose tightens aroundthe terrorist''s neck, he and his associates will become increasingly desperate.
