"Hot Off the Presses"

Newsletter Article, Belfer Center Newsletter, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School

Fall 2004

 

Nuclear Terrorism: The Ultimate Preventable Catastrophe

Graham Allison

Times Books, 2004

In Nuclear Terrorism, Graham Allison, former dean of Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government, a former top Pentagon official, and one of America's leading scholars of nuclear strategy and national security, gives us an urgent call to action. He makes the case that nuclear terrorism is inevitable-if we continue on our present course-and he sets out an ambitious but achievable plan for preventing a catastrophic attack before it's too late.

 

"Graham Allison is a latter-day Paul Revere, calling citizens to arms against the real and rising threat of nuclear terrorism."

-Sam Nunn, former U.S. Senator and co-Chairman, Nuclear Threat Initiative

"Allison's comprehensive but accessible treatment of this vital subject is a major contribution to public understanding. In turn, an informed public could spur the government to complete the counterterrorism agenda. Only then, as Allison argues, will nuclear terror against America prove preventable."

-James Hoge,

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The New York Times Book Review Crafting the New Nigeria: Confronting the Challenges

Robert I. Rotberg, Editor

Lynne Reinner Publishers, 2004

Is Nigeria, with its vast wealth in both human and natural resources, on the path to realizing its enormous potential? Or is it in danger of becoming a failed state? Crafting the New Nigeria considers the challenges that the country's leadership now faces, offering rich-and sobering-analyses of Nigeria's current political and economic systems, ethnic divisions, the HIV/AIDS crisis, and human rights.

"Provides a rich, timely, and indispensable understanding of the political and economic systems in Nigeria today."

-Princeton N. Lyman, Council on Foreign Relations

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The Russian Military: Power and Policy

Steven E. Miller and Dmitri Trenin

The MIT Press, 2004

Russian military capacity remains a major consideration for global security even in the post-Soviet era. This book assesses today's Russian military and analyzes its possible future direction. The contributors-experts on the subject from both Russia and the West-consider not only how Russia has built its military capacity but also the policies and doctrines that have shaped Russia's defense posture. The contributors to The Russian Military find that the choices Russian leaders have made have been significantly influenced by the military reforms Russia has attempted to implement since the collapse of the Soviet Union. The protracted and intense debate over military reform has been-and will continue to be-decisive in shaping Russian military capacity.

"This first-rate set of essays is a timely and remarkably comprehensive assessment of the contemporary state of the Russian military. It deserves the attention not only of those interest in military affairs, but also those concerned with political and economic developments in Russia."

-Lieutenant General William Odom (U.S.Army, Ret.), Senior Fellow, Hudson Institute,Washington, D.C.

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The Power Game

Joseph S. Nye Jr.

Public Affairs Press, 2004

In this political thriller, former Kennedy School of Government Dean Joseph Nye writes about nuclear proliferation, a subject he knows well. Peter Cutler is a respected Princeton professor living a quiet academic life when an old college friend makes him an offer he can't refuse: the position of foreign policy advisor. Cutler soon discovers that the power politics of Washington are a far cry from the comforts of university life. Ultimately, the allure and hypocrisy of political life cause him to alienate everyone he cares about-and to make one life-altering political miscalculation.

 

"In this Washington novel of political intrigue, ultimate insider Nye, a Harvard professor and former deputy to the undersecretary of defense for international security affairs, eschews the action/adventure route to portray the rise and fall of one Peter Cutler . . .This is a realistic, entertaining, thought-provoking novel in a genre not widely read these days, written by a respected author with an engaging style and an intimate knowledge of the territory."

-Publishers Weekly

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International Security Readers

New Global Dangers: Changing Dimensions of International Security

Edited by Michael E. Brown, Owen R. Coté Jr., Sean M. Lynn-Jones and Steven E. Miller

August 2004

The book looks first at the relationship between weapons and security, discussing such aspects of proliferation as "nuclear entrepreneurship" in Russia and the threat of biological warfare. It then examines nonmilitary security concerns, including resource scarcity, migration, HIV/AIDS in Africa, and why humanitarian assistance sometimes does more harm than good. Finally, it looks at the role of transnational actors, including terrorist groups, nongovernmental organizations, and the privatized military industry.

"International Security has been remarkably consistent in demonstrating that academic excellence does not have to come at the expense of policy relevance. New Global Dangers confirms this essential quality, with cool and informed analysis on the most pressing issues of current policy."

-Sir Lawrence Freedman, Professor of War Studies and Vice Principal (Research), King's College London

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Offense, Defense, and War

Edited by Michael E. Brown, Owen R. Coté Jr., Sean M. Lynn-Jones and Steven E. Miller

October 2004

Offense-defense theory argues that the relative ease of offense and defense varies in international politics. When the offense has the advantage, military conquest becomes easier and war is more likely; the opposite it true when the defense has the advantage. The balance between offense and defense depends on geography, technology, and other factors. This theory, and the body of related theories, has generated much debate and research over the past twenty-five years.

 

"Offense, Defense, and War is sure to be an invaluable book for students of international politics. It contains virtually all of the key works on offense defense theory, a truly important set of ideas about how states behave toward each other."

-John J. Mearsheimer, R.Wendell Harrison Distinguished Service Professor of Political Science, University of Chicago

 

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