EVENTS
The Art of the Nuclear Deal: When to Use Carrots and Sticks in Nuclear Nonproliferation
Seminar
Open to the Public - Belfer Center Library, Littauer-369
December 5, 2012
10:00-11:30 a.m.
Speaker: Robert Reardon
Related Projects: Managing the Atom, Science, Technology, and Public Policy, International Security
This presentation examines how coercive threats and sanctions on the one hand, and offers of positive inducements affect the decision making of states with nuclear weapons aspirations.
USNORTHCOM Photo
U.S. Military Decision-Making and its International Security Structure
Brown Bag Lunch
Open to the Public - Belfer Center Library, Littauer-369
November 29, 2012
12:15-2:00 p.m.
Speaker: Troy Endicott, Research Fellow, International Security Program
Related Project: International Security
A keen understanding of the United States' International Security role is often underpinned by a working knowledge of the U.S. warfighting Combatant Command (COCOM) structure, service roles, and responsibilities of key commanders. This seminar is informative in nature and outlines the nation's COCOMs, geographic areas of responsibilities, key unified command plan changes, and stategic/operational planning constructs.
Please join us! Coffee and tea provided. Everyone is welcome, but admittance will be on a first come–first served basis.
Co-sponsored by the Armed Forces Committe's For the Common Defense Seminar Series
Unending Crisis? The Future of US National Security Policy
Seminar
Open to the Public - Belfer Center Library, Littauer-369
November 28, 2012
10:00-11:30 a.m.
Related Projects: Managing the Atom, Science, Technology, and Public Policy, International Security
Amb. Thomas Graham, Jr. will discuss the failures of U.S. foreign policy that have resulted in major--and almost irresolvable--national security crises in Iran, North Korea, Israel and Palestine and elsewhere.
Prospects for Regional Nuclear Cooperation in Southeast Asia
Brown Bag Lunch
Open to the Public - Belfer Center Library, Littauer-369
November 19, 2012
12:15-2:00 p.m.
Speaker: Yvonne Yew, Research Fellow, Internatioanl Security Program/Project on Managing the Atom
Related Projects: International Security, Managing the Atom, Science, Technology, and Public Policy
As a region that plans to introduce its first nuclear power plants within the decade, Southeast Asia presents its own unique features in fostering regional cooperation in the nuclear field. While the Fukushima Daichii nuclear disaster last year has slowed nuclear plans in the region, a number of Southeast Asian countries continue to look to nuclear energy as part of their energy mix. This seminar examines the benefits and challenges of a nuclear cooperative approach in the context of closer Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) integration and provides recommendations on the way forward.
Please join us! Coffee and tea provided. Everyone is welcome, but admittance will be on a first come–first served basis.
Co-sponsored by Project on Managing the Atom
War of Words: The Case for Negotiations in Afghanistan
Brown Bag Lunch
Open to the Public - Belfer Center Library, Littauer-369
November 15, 2012
12:15-2:00 p.m.
Speaker: Matt Waldman, Research Fellow, International Security Program
Related Project: International Security
Despite the U.S. military surge and costly counter-insurgency efforts, the Taliban remain powerful in Afghanistan. With the withdrawal of NATO troops, and diminution of international leverage, there is an urgent need to establish a peace process. Dialogue might not resolve the conflict: there are numerous obstacles and concerns. But given that the Taliban are interested in talks — and that the likely alternative to a settlement is protracted conflict and insurgent gains — it would be a profound mistake not to explore the possibilities for negotiations.
Please join us! Coffee and tea provided. Everyone is welcome, but admittance will be on a first come–first served basis.
AP Photo
Conventional Conflict in Nuclear Primacy
Brown Bag Lunch
Open to the Public - Belfer Center Library, Littauer-369
November 8, 2012
12:15-2:00 p.m.
Speaker: Paul C. Avey, Research Fellow, International Security Program/Project on Managing the Atom
Related Projects: International Security, Managing the Atom, Science, Technology, and Public Policy
Why do states challenge and resist states with vastly superior nuclear arsenals? This seminar argues that these asymmetric nuclear situations create both motives and opportunities for frequent, low-level conflict among interstate rivals. The seminar uses data on nuclear asymmetry and conflict from 1945–2000 as well as an examination of Soviet decision-making during the early Cold War to assess this claim.
Please join us! Coffee and tea provided. Everyone is welcome, but admittance will be on a first come–first served basis.
U.S. Army
South Korea and the U.S. Nuclear Umbrella: Extended Deterrence in the Post-Cold War World
Seminar
Open to the Public - Belfer Center Library, Littauer-369
November 7, 2012
10:00-11:30 a.m.
Speaker: Terence Roehrig, Research Fellow, Project on Managing the Atom/International Security Program
Related Projects: Managing the Atom, Science, Technology, and Public Policy, International Security
Since 1953, the United States has maintained a formal extended deterrence commitment to protect South Korea. This talk will examine the history of the U.S. nuclear umbrella for South Korea, the role the umbrella plays in South Korean and U.S. security planning, and questions regarding the credibility of the commitment.
Please join us! Coffee and tea provided. Everyone is welcome, but admittance will be on a first come–first served basis.
Leaving Theory Behind: Why Too Much Hypothesis Testing is Bad for International Relations
Brown Bag Lunch
Open to the Public - Allison Dining Room, Taubman Building-5th Floor
November 1, 2012
12:15-2:00 p.m.
Speaker: Stephen M. Walt, Robert and Renée Belfer Professor of International Affairs; Faculty Chair, International Security Program, John J. Mearsheimer, R. Wendell Harrison Distinguished Service Professor of Political Science, University of Chicago
Related Project: International Security
Theory creating and hypothesis testing are both important elements of social science. Unfortunately, in recent years the balance between theory creation/refinement and the testing of empirical hypotheses has shifted sharply toward the latter. This trend is unfortunate, because insufficient attention to theory can lead to misspecified models and overreliance on misleading measures of key concepts. In addition, the poor quality of much of the data in IR makes it less likely that these efforts will produce useful cumulative knowledge.
Please join us! Coffee and tea provided. Everyone is welcome, but admittance will be on a first come–first served basis.
Press TV
From Stumbling Blocks to Building Blocks: The Roles of Iran, Israel, and the US in a WMD-Free Zone in the Middle East
Seminar
Open to the Public - Belfer Center Library, Littauer-369
October 31, 2012
10:00-11:30 a.m.
Speaker: Sven-Eric Fikenscher
Related Projects: Managing the Atom, Science, Technology, and Public Policy, International Security
This talk will examine the pivotal roles of Iran, Israel, and the United States in the attempts to establish a weapons of mass destruction free zone in the Middle East.
Migrant Labor, National Security, and Political Mobilization: A Case Study of the United Arab Emirates
Brown Bag Lunch
Open to the Public - Belfer Center Library, Littauer-369
October 25, 2012
12:15-2:00 p.m.
Speaker: Noora Lori, Research Fellow, International Security Program
Related Project: International Security
This seminar examines how migrant labor impacts democratization processes in the United Arab Emirates, where non-citizens comprise over 96 percent of the labor force. Unlike previous studies that show how stringent citizenship policies impede the social mobility and political organization of migrant groups, the seminar will explain how migration policies also shape the way citizens mobilize politically.
Please join us! Coffee and tea provided. Everyone is welcome, but admittance will be on a first come–first served basis.
