Reducing the threat of nuclear terrorism--a report card on the Obama administration's efforts

This thesis seeks to explain if President Barack Obama's efforts to reduce nuclear terrorism have had a meaningful impact. Key areas of observation include how well efforts have been implemented and how effectively the president has fostered domestic and international support. Early in his presidency, President Obama declared to the world that the United States would lead a concerted effort to reduce the threat of nuclear terrorism. Combined with the Nuclear Security Summits, the president's efforts quickly established reducing the threat of nuclear terrorism as a top priority for his administration. Over the ensuing eight years, President Obama diligently supported nonproliferation measures by enhancing the domestic and international nonproliferation architecture. The president's integrative approach wove nonproliferation efforts together that had, traditionally, not been used to reduce the threat of nuclear terrorism. The findings of this thesis indicate that most of the programs were successful but problems remain, particularly in areas linked to further arms reductions and international nonproliferation. The next president can further these efforts by continuing the integrative approach, crafting a more cooperative relationship with Congress and expanding threat reduction activities beyond Russia.

Department dc:contributor.department

National Security Affairs (NSA)

Grantor dc:publisher

Monterey, CA; Naval Postgraduate School

Year dc:date.issued

2016

Author dc:creator

• Hargraves, Drew P.

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Moltz, James Clay

Statement dc:rights

• This publication is a work of the U.S. Government as defined in Title 17, United States Code, Section 101. Copyright protection is not available for this work in the United States.

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/10945/51714

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:calhoun.nps.edu:10945/51714