Limited Nuclear War: The 21st Century Challenge for the United States

“Limited Nuclear War: The 21st Century Challenge for the United States”

Speaker: Warden, J. (Institute for Defense Analyses)

Date: 12 September 2018

Speaker Session Preview

SMA hosted a speaker session presented by Mr. John Warden (Institute for Defense Analyses) as a part of its SMA STRATCOM Academic Alliance Speaker Series. Mr. Warden’s presentation focused on the following issue: A US adversary may come to believe that it can engage in and win a limited nuclear war against the US and its allies. He provided a few historical examples in which nations engaged in limited war and focused on the US and Soviet plans for limited nuclear war in Europe from the 1950s-1970s. He then discussed the “21st century challenge” (Russia, China, and North Korea are dissatisfied with the US-led international order and are pursuing strategies and capabilities to challenge US influence) and its potential implications. Mr. Warden also explained the relative attractiveness and potential benefits of nuclear escalation in a variety of scenarios, as well as the likely costs and risks of crossing the nuclear threshold. To conclude his brief, Mr. Warden presented a series of adversary strategies for prevailing in limited nuclear war and ways in which the US and its allies can strengthen deterrence.