Nuclear Weapons in 2023: New Realities

Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine a year ago, Putin has more than once hinted at the use of Russia’s nuclear arsenal.  As Washington-Moscow relations continue to slide, the entire architecture of bilateral agreements on nuclear limitations is eroding.  What can the US government, and US citizens, and the rest of the world, do to lessen the risk of nuclear conflict in Ukraine and globally?

ABOUT THE SPEAKER: Tom Countryman has served as the Board Chairman of the Arms Control Association since 2017, after retiring that year from the Senior Foreign Service after 35 years of service. At that time, he served simultaneously as acting Undersecretary for Arms Control and International Security, and as Assistant Secretary for International Security and Nonproliferation. He has held senior diplomatic positions in every corner of the globe, returning temporarily to the Department of State in 2021-22 as a Senior Advisor and as the deputy head of the US Delegation to the 2022 Review Conference of the Nonproliferation Treaty.

Mr. Countryman was born and raised in Tacoma.  He is a graduate of Bellarmine Preparatory School and Washington University in St. Louis.  He speaks Serbo-Croatian, Arabic, German, Italian and Greek.