From Nonproliferation to Counterterrorism and Beyond: U.S. Foreign Policy, Global Governance and the Evolution of the Nuclear Security Regime

This dissertation examines the formation and evolution of the nuclear security regime (NSR) which governs programs, policies and norms associated with the protection of nuclear and radiological materials that sub-state groups might seek to acquire for use in a terrorist attack. The regime is unique in the security field in that it is an ad hoc, voluntary structure that more closely resembles regimes associated with environment protection than the institutionalized, internationally negotiated treaties and alliances that are typical of regimes governing national security affairs. The dissertation reviews how the NSR developed over 16 years and spanned U.S presidential administrations with generally opposing approaches to multilateral cooperation and global governance. It is divided into five chapters that describe the regime; places its development within the academic context of regime theory and multilateral cooperation; traces the regime's evolution from nonproliferation efforts to counterterrorism ones; looks at the specific approaches enacted by the George W. Bush and Barack H. Obama administrations; and concludes with observations on the regime's continued longevity.

Name thesis:degree_name

Doctor of Philosophy

Level thesis:degree_level

doctoral

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Planning, Governance, and Globalization

Department dc:contributor.department

Public Administration/Public Affairs

Grantor dc:publisher

Virginia Tech

Year dc:date.issued

2023

Author dc:creator

• Johnson, Craig Michael

Chair dc:contributor.committeechair

• Peters, Joel

Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember

• Schmid, Sonja
• Roberts, Patrick S.
• Ahram, Ariel I.

• National Security
• Multilateralism

Statement dc:rights

• Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Language dc:language.iso

en

Dc Identifier Other

vt_gsexam:36336

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/113745