Issue Briefs
Original analysis by FAS experts are available as free PDF downloads. These reports provide nonpartisan research for policymakers, government officials, academics, and the general public.
May 2013: Regulating Japanese Nuclear Power in the Wake of the Fukushima Daiichi Accident
The 2011 accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant was preventable. The Great East Japan earthquake and the tsunami that followed it were unprecedented events in recent history, but they were not altogether unforeseeable. Stronger regulation across the nuclear power industry could have prevented many of the worst outcomes at Fukushima Daiichi and will be needed to prevent future accidents.
In an FAS issue brief, Dr. Charles Ferguson and Mr. Mark Jansson review some of the major problems leading up to the accident and provides an overview of proposed regulatory reforms, including an overhaul of the nuclear regulatory bureaucracy and specific safety requirements which are being considered for implementation in all nuclear power plants. Read the brief here.
December 2012: Japan's Role as Leader for Nuclear Nonproliferation
A country with few natural resources, first Japan began to develop nuclear power technologies in 1954. Nuclear energy assisted with Japanese economic development and reconstruction post World War II. However, with the fear of lethal ash and radioactive fallout and the lingering effects from the 2011 accident at Fukushima-Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, there are many concerns related to Japanese nonproliferation, security and nuclear policy.
In a FAS issue brief, Ms. Kazuko Goto, Research Fellow of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology of the Government of Japan, writes of Japan’s advancement of nuclear technologies which simultaneously benefits international nonproliferation policies. Read the brief here.
June 2012: Sanctions and Nonproliferation in North Korea and Iran
The nuclear programs of North Korea and Iran have been, for many years, two of the most pressing and intractable security challenges facing the United States and the international community. While frequently lumped together as “rogue states,” the two countries have vastly different social, economic, and political systems, and the history and status of their nuclear and long-range missile programs differ in several critical aspects.
The international responses to Iranian and North Korean proliferation bear many similarities, particularly in the use of economic sanctions as a central tool of policy. Daniel Wertz, Program Officer at the National Committee on North Korea, and Dr. Ali Vaez, former Director of the Iran Project at the Federation of American Scientists, offer a comparative analysis of U.S. policy toward Iran and North Korea in a FAS issue brief available here.
Sep 26, 2011 - A Nuclear-Free Mirage
Charles P. Blair, Senior Fellow on State and Non-State Threats, interviewed Federation of American Scientists’ Senior Fellow for Nuclear Policy Dr. Robert Standish Norris. The report takes a deeper look at the nuclear policies of the Obama administration—polices that Dr. Norris terms “radical” with regard to their vision of a nuclear weapon free world. Read the report.
June 2011 - The B61 Life-Extension Program: Increasing NATO Nuclear Capability and Precision Low-Yield Strikes
A modified U.S. nuclear bomb currently under design will have improved military capabilities compared with older weapons and increase the targeting capability of NATO’s nuclear arsenal. The B61-12, the product of a planned 30-year life extension and consolidation of four existing versions of the B61 into one, will be equipped with a new guidance system to increase its accuracy. As a result, the U.S. non-strategic nuclear bombs currently deployed in five European countries will return to Europe as a life-extended version in 2018 with an enhanced capability targets. Read the report.
Jan 21, 2011 - Using Enrichment Capacity to Estimate Iran’s Breakout Potential
While diplomats and officials claim Iran has slowed down its nuclear drive, new analysis shows that Iran's enrichment capacity grew during 2010 and warns against complacency as five world powers resume talks this week. Read the FAS Issue Brief (PDF).
Jul 22, 2010 - Will Iran Give Up Twenty Percent Enrichment?
Apr 29, 2010 - Recommendations for the U.S. Delegation to the NPT Review Conference
The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) has endured as the cornerstone of the non-proliferation regime and remains the only legally binding multilateral agreement on nuclear disarmament. In May 2010, the NPT Review Conference met at the United Nations and provided a critical opportunity to advance the vision President Obama laid out of a world free of nuclear weapons. Read more here.
Apr 16, 2010 - The Twenty Percent Solution: Breaking the Iranian Stalemate
President Obama’s deadline to address concerns about Tehran's nuclear program passed at the end of 2009, so the White House is moving to harsher sanctions. But the U.S. is having trouble rallying the needed international support because Iranian intentions remain ambiguous. Read the report here (PDF)
Jan 8, 2010 - Eight Recommendations for Improving Transparency in US Arms Transfers
Transparency is essential for effective congressional and public oversight of arms exports. Without complete and accurate data on the quantity, type and recipients of exported defense articles and services, it is impossible to assess the extent to which arms transfers further national security and foreign policy. Read more expert analysis here (PDF).
Dec 2, 2009 - Calculating the Capacity at Fordow
FAS experts conclude that while the construction and the announcement of Iran’s Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant, does not prove an intention to deceive the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), it raises troubling questions. The facility is too small for a commercial enrichment facility, raising concerns that it might be intended as a covert facility to produce highly enriched uranium for weapons. Read more here (PDF).
