CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues

@CSIS's Project on Nuclear Issues hopes to sustain a community of next-gen nuclear experts & generate new ideas & debate on nuclear issues. RT≠endorsement

[CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues @csisponi]

REMINDER: Applications are still open for the 2027 Nuclear Scholars Initiative!

The Nuclear Scholars Initiative aims to provide top graduate students and young professionals from around the country with a unique venue to interact and dialogue with senior experts on nuclear weapons issues. Those accepted into the program are hosted once per month over the course of six months at CSIS in Washington, DC where they participate in two-day workshops.

Applications are due Monday, November 2 at 11:59 PM ET. Please view all application requirements here: https://t.co/diEUVZWF2q

[CSIS @CSIS]

TOMORROW | Eight months after the U.S. launched Operation Epic Fury, Iran’s nuclear status remains a hurdle for bringing the war to an end. Join @CSISDefense for a discussion surrounding the origin, lessons, and potential endgame of the Iran war.

Register: https://t.co/0QWh6zIuQk

[CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues @csisponi]

This month, PONI's @heatherwilly and Diya Ashtakala were published in The Washington Quarterly!

In "Disarmament by Replacement: Imagining Alternatives to Nuclear Weapons," Williams argues that current visions for disarmament are focused on the wrong challenge: the more fundamental issue is not the slowing pace of disarmament, but rather the failure of the nuclear order to account for the impact of emerging technologies on disarmament.

In "India-Pakistan Nuclear Signaling and China’s Trilemma," Ashtakala argues that the next India-Pakistan confrontation will likely involve China at the outset, increasing escalation risk and requiring urgent revitalization of confidence-building measures among them.

Read both analyses here: https://t.co/Fn87BfI5Tn

[CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues @csisponi]

Applications for the 2027 Nuclear Scholars Initiative are now live!

The Nuclear Scholars Initiative aims to provide top graduate students and young professionals from around the country with a unique venue to interact and dialogue with senior experts on nuclear weapons issues. Those accepted into the program are hosted once per month over the course of six months at CSIS in Washington, DC where they participate in two-day workshops.

Applications are due Monday, November 2 at 11:59 PM ET. Please view all application requirements here: https://t.co/diEUVZWF2q

[CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues @csisponi]

We're excited to announce the 2026 Labs Nuclear Scholars Initiative! Meet the cohort: https://t.co/C1eQiDA8Yc

The Labs Nuclear Scholars Initiative aims to provide early career experts from the national laboratories and NNSA with a unique venue to interact, dialogue and gain in-depth knowledge on nuclear weapons. Learn more about the Labs Nuclear Scholars Initiative here: https://t.co/JbaGrBkAMy

[CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues @csisponi]

New satellite imagery reveals the most construction activity at Iran's Pickaxe Mountain in the nuclear site's six-year history. CSIS experts Joseph Rodgers and Doug Comstock explain what the images show and why even the U.S.'s largest bunker-buster may not be enough to destroy it.

Watch the video here: https://t.co/9Mq9djF2ew

[CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues @csisponi]

Applications are still open for a fall PONI intern!

The PONI interns will provide assistance to the team, learn more on deterrence, arms control, and disarmament, support programming, and have the opportunity to produce an independent research product for the Next Generation Nuclear Network website.

To receive priority consideration, please apply by Monday, September 28: https://t.co/mneMdEyCbH

[CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues @csisponi]

PONI has opened applications for a fall intern!

The PONI interns will provide assistance to the team, learn more on deterrence, arms control, and disarmament, support programming, and have the opportunity to produce an independent research product for the Next Generation Nuclear Network website.

To receive priority consideration, please apply by Monday, September 28: https://t.co/AorFZo6yOa

[CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues @csisponi]

REMINDER: PONI will be hosting its 2026 Fall Conference at CSIS on November 17!

Applications to present at the conference are now open and are due September 21. Please apply and register to attend here: https://t.co/qXTU7QkNiy

[CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues @csisponi]

NEW COMMENTARY:

PONI's Heather Williams and Energy Security and Climate Change's Jane Nakano analyze the Saudi 123 Agreement, arguing the proposed U.S.-Saudi civil nuclear agreement has both risks and opportunities for U.S. national security. What would Washington gain? How might it affect global nonproliferation norms, or shape global interests in nuclear defense capacity? How might it impact U.S. competition with China?

To explore these questions in greater depth, read the full commentary here: https://t.co/zfzscJxodx

[CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues @csisponi]

NEW PONI ANALYSIS:

PONI's Joseph Rodgers recently published a CSIS commentary using new satellite imagery to analyze upticks in 2026 construction activity at Pickaxe Mountain. Multisource imagery analysis of Pickaxe Mountain and the Natanz Nuclear Facility from 2020 to the present reveals a clear three-phase activity signature across the five key points of interest and the roads connecting them, indicating a site that has shifted from active excavation toward probable internal construction and continued exterior reinforcement.

Read the full analysis here: https://t.co/pD3MyLTS39

[CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues @csisponi]

✨Nuclear Scholars Initiative Spotlight ✨

Natasha Wood is a Program Analyst for TechSource supporting the National Nuclear Security Administration’s Office of Defense Programs. Natasha previously served as a congressional staffer for four years, during which time she managed the House Foreign Affairs Committee portfolio for Rep. Jim Costa, and led the Transatlantic Legislators’ Dialogue on the staff level. She is an Atlantic Council Eurasia Center Congressional Fellow, and a former graduate intern at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) on the Strategic Technologies Program. Natasha has a master’s in international security and technology policy from The Fletcher School at Tufts University, and a bachelor’s (magna cum laude) from the University of Pennsylvania.

Learn more about the 2026 Nuclear Scholars Initiative: https://t.co/NbSA6wyy0x

[CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues @csisponi]

PONI will be hosting its 2026 Fall Conference at CSIS on November 17!

Applications to present at the conference are now open and are due September 21. Please apply and register to attend here: https://t.co/qXTU7QkNiy

[CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues @csisponi]

The third module of the Arms Control 101 series, "Arms Control and Alliances," is out now.

In this episode of Arms Control 101, we explore the crucial role U.S. allies play in shaping arms control agreements. When allies are included in the consultative process, arms control can bolster extended deterrence and alliance cohesion and can advance nonproliferation objectives. The episode outlines the crucial role of allies in advancing transatlantic security through case studies on the dual-track decision, the Intermediate Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, and the Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE) Treaty.

Watch the full video here: https://t.co/oB4f0AEgU1

[CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues @csisponi]

✨Nuclear Scholars Initiative Spotlight ✨

Will Smock-Egan is a national security specialist at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in the Emerging Threats and Technologies Division. In this role, he works at the intersection of technology and policy, focusing on nonproliferation, space security, and critical minerals and materials. Previously, Will served as a National Nuclear Security Administration Graduate Fellow with the Office of Stockpile Management, where he contributed to the modernization and sustainment of the United States’ nuclear deterrent. He also served as chief of staff to a state legislator in Colorado. Will holds an MA in International Security and dual BAs in Political Science and International Studies from the University of Denver.

Learn more about the 2026 Nuclear Scholars Initiative: https://t.co/NbSA6wy0aZ

[CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues @csisponi]

✨Nuclear Scholars Initiative Spotlight ✨
Captain Curtis “LoTro” Smith is a B-52H Stratofortress Aircraft Commander and Assistant Flight Commander for the 69th Bomb Squadron, Minot Air Force Base, ND. In this position, Curt is responsible for nuclear and conventional global strike operations, has taken part in multiple deployments, and oversees Mission Qualification Training for new B-52 aircrew. Curt holds a Bachelors of Science in Political Science from the U.S. Air Force Academy, an MA in International Affairs from King’s College London, and a certificate on Nuclear Weapons Effects, Policy, and Proliferation from the Air Force Institute of Technology. Past assignments include completion of Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training at Sheppard Air Force Base, TX, and serving as a parachuting instructor at the U.S. Air Force Academy.

Learn more about the 2026 Nuclear Scholars Initiative: https://t.co/I2cyCEgU2d

[CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues @csisponi]

✨Nuclear Scholars Initiative Spotlight ✨

Samreen Singh is a Policy Analyst at Leidos, specializing in nuclear deterrence and strategic modernization. She supports the Nuclear Weapons Council within the National Nuclear Security Administration, advising on deterrence priorities and coordinating decisions across multiple warhead modernization programs. Her work includes guiding senior leadership on material negotiations with UK counterparts under the U.S.–UK Mutual Defense Agreement. Previously, at the U.S. Department of Justice she managed bilateral and regional programs across Asia to counter transnational crime and terrorism, strengthening cooperation with foreign criminal justice institutions. Samreen holds a Master’s in Public Policy from American University and a Bachelor’s in Government and International Politics from George Mason University where she was a Global Politics Fellow. Samreen participated in CSIS’ Labs Nuclear Scholars Initiative, and has engaged in strategic dialogue on advancing trilateral security cooperation among South Korea, the United States, and Australia through the Atlantic Council’s Next Generation Agenda.

Learn more about the 2026 Nuclear Scholars Initiative: https://t.co/NbSA6wy0aZ

[CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues @csisponi]

Would Russia view new U.S. investments in missile defense as more destabilizing than forward-deployed nuclear forces in Europe? What drives Chinese strategic investments—Xi Jinping’s personal political agenda or U.S. deployments in the Indo-Pacific? And would additional U.S., British, French, or other European investments in nuclear or strategic conventional capabilities incentivize Russia and China to continue their qualitative and quantitative nuclear buildups, or might they settle into a new strategic balance?

PONI explores these and other questions in its new report, "Risks of Racing: Russian and Chinese Perceptions of Strategic Competition in the Euro-Atlantic Region."

Read the full report here: https://t.co/fszbLsWzk4