Book Description
Since the end of the Cold War, the United States has maintained the safety and effectiveness of its aging nuclear arsenal through the stockpile stewardship program. This program utilizes advanced scientific and computational means as a substitute for underground explosive nuclear testing. For three decades, science-based stockpile stewardship has served the United States well. But as the global security environment has evolved, and relationships with Russia and China have been more competitive and confrontational, it is necessary to examine whether and how the U.S. approach to maintaining a nuclear deterrent might need to evolve. Russia and China have also maintained nuclear deterrents with advanced scientific and computational means; but they have gone well beyond the stewardship of legacy capabilities to modernize and significantly adapt their arsenals. Rather than compete with both on their terms, the United States must compete on its own terms with an eye to maintaining deterrence, assurance, and strategic stability.
