News and Press Releases
President’s Defense Budget is a Starting Point, Not the End
“Despite a bipartisan coalition in Congress to reshape Pentagon spending, the political will to make difficult decisions about specific Defense Department programs is low,” said Heeley.
Secretary Hagel Takes on Pentagon’s Top Challenge: Reshaping Itself
“For too long Cold War ideology, special interests and a ‘this-is-the-way-we-do-things’ mentality has controlled the strategy and checkbook of the Pentagon,” said Laicie Heeley, senior policy analyst at The Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation. “U.S. national security needs to be based on a sound strategy that meets 21st century security threats, including the threat posed by our ballooning debt.”
Psy or a Nuke – South Korea Likely to Pick Psy
“Developing a nuclear weapon would be disastrous to the world’s 13th largest economy that is heavily dependent of international trade,” said James Lewis, spokesman for the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation. “There would be no smartphones, fashion or superstars like Psy. South Korea can either have Psy or a nuke – they will likely pick Psy.”
Former Hostages Call for Expanding Talks with Iran
Academy award-winning “best picture,” Argo, has resurrected American interest in this dark diplomatic episode. Two hostages from the crisis, retired Ambassadors Bruce Laingen and John Limbert, called on the United States and Iran to learn from the lessons of the 1979 crisis rather than be held hostage to the ever-escalating cycle of confrontation that has defined U.S.-Iranian relations for decades. On the eve of the P5+1 talks in which diplomats from the United States and Iran will meet in Almaty, Kazakhstan, the Ambassadors call for broadening the scope of negotiations with Iran beyond the nuclear issue to advance a diplomatic solution.