On February 19, Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security Deputy Director Matthew Kroenig, Forward Defense Assistant Director Mark J. Massa, and Young Global Professional Raphael Piliero wrote an op-ed on nuclear modernization for Defense News. In this article, Kroenig, Massa, and Piliero argue that recently confirmed Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks will be the Pentagon’s most influential player on nuclear issues during the Biden administration, highlighting the testimony she gave during her Senate confirmation hearing. They call for her to support nuclear modernization and reject a no first use nuclear doctrine.
… [Deputy Secretary of Defense] Hicks will likely be the Pentagon’s primary decision-maker at the Pentagon on matters related to nuclear modernization.
Forward Defense leads the Atlantic Council’s US and global defense programming, developing actionable recommendations for the United States and its allies and partners to compete, innovate, and navigate the rapidly evolving character of warfare. Through its work on US defense policy and force design, the military applications of advanced technology, space security, strategic deterrence, and defense industrial revitalization, it informs the strategies, policies, and capabilities that the United States will need to deter, and, if necessary, prevail in major-power conflict.
