In the News

495 Items

141. Jessica Varnum Talks Turkey on the Peter Tilden Show

     November 18, 2019

     “We are getting to a point of no return” in the US-Turkey relationship, Deputy Director of the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies (CNS) Jessica Varnum tells Peter Tilden of KABC Radio, discussing the ramifications of of US withdrawal from Syria and Ankara’s tightening ties to Moscow. She spoke with Tilden, drawing on her deep expertise on Turkey and the region in October and in November during President Erdogan’s White House visit.

142. North Korea Seen Lining Up Military Aircraft For Possible Show

     November 14, 2019

     In the absence of sanctions relief (or any progress at all on transforming US relations). North Korea “is going gangbusters” on its missile program, Professor Jeffrey Lewis, director of the CNS East Asia Nonproliferation Program tells NPR, regarding reports on North Korea’s imminent—and large—military aircraft show.

143. Iran ‘closer to making nuclear weapon’ in latest breach of landmark deal

     November 6, 2019

     If Iran restarts enrichment at Fordow, it will be “relatively harder to reverse [course], since once nuclear material is fed into a centrifuge you cant do anything else with it other than enrichment,” Chen Kane, director of the CNS Middle East Nonproliferation program tells The Independent.

144. Tiny, privately owned satellites are changing how we view the Earth

     November 3, 2019

     Sarah Bidgood MANPTS ‘16, director of the CNS Eurasia Nonproliferation Program spoke to NBC Nightly News about the importance of Planet Labs satellite imagery. “Being able to track granular changes on the ground is so important in producing nuanced analyses, especially in the nonproliferation space.”

145. Russia just tested an ICBM near the site of its deadly nuclear missile accident

     November 1, 2019

     James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies Research Associate Michael Duitsman MANPTS ‘15 explains the capability of the sub-launched Bulava missile Russia tested this week (from near the site of the failed Skyfall test) to BusinessInsider with help from 3D models.

146. Here's what's going on with the 50 American nuclear weapons stationed in Turkey

     October 25, 2019

     How powerful are the U.S. nuclear weapons in Turkey? How secure are they? Why are they there? And do they have “Kiss it Khrushchev” written on them? Middlebury Institute Professor Jeffrey Lewis, director the CNS East Asia Nonproliferation Program discusses all this—and what to do about them—on CBC Radio One.

147. Why the US has nuclear weapons in Turkey – and may try to put the bombs away

     October 23, 2019

     Miles Pomper, senior fellow at the Institute’s James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies breaks down the complex issue of U.S. nuclear weapons stationed in Turkey for The Conversation.

148. Erdogan’s Ambitions Go Beyond Syria. He Says He Wants Nuclear Weapons

     October 20, 2019

     “Erdogan is playing to an anti-American domestic audience with his nuclear rhetoric, but is highly unlikely to pursue nuclear weapons.” - The New York Times quotes Jessica C. Varnum, an expert on Turkey at the Middlebury Institute’s James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies in front page article. “There would be huge economic and reputational costs to Turkey, which would hurt the pocketbooks of Erdogan’s voters.”

149. The Bomb in College Classrooms

     October 14, 2019

     The Bomb in College Classrooms - We’re not teaching students enough about weapons of mass destruction — and it shows, warns Sarah Bidgood MANPTS ‘16, director of the Eurasia Nonproliferation Program at the Middlebury Institute’s James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies in Inside Higher Ed.

150. ISIS prisoners break out amid Turkish advances

     October 13, 2019

     The Boston Herald reached out to Sharad Joshi, associate professor in the Middlebury Institute’s Nonproliferation and Terrorism Studies degree program to provide commentary on the consequences of hundreds of fighters, affiliated with the Islamic State, breaking free from camps in Northern Syria after attacks from Turkey on the Kurds who were guarding them.