The Trump administration’s Nuclear Posture Review: Continuity and change

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With the unveiling of the 2018 Nuclear Posture Review (NPR), the Trump administration builds on President Obama’s multi-decade plan to modernize each leg of the U.S. nuclear triad and nuclear command and control system, calling it “an affordable priority.” At the same time, the Trump NPR goes beyond the 2010 NPR in a number of ways. These changes include seeking a new, low-yield warhead for some sea-launched ballistic missiles and a new nuclear-armed sea-launched cruise missile and by articulating a revised declaratory policy that could envision the U.S. use of nuclear weapons in a wider range of contingencies, such as in response to a cyberattack against U.S. command and control or early warning capabilities.

On February 12, the Foreign Policy program at Brookings hosted a discussion of the 2018 NPR. The event featured a keynote by Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Policy David Trachtenberg. Following his remarks, a panel convened that included Jim Miller, under secretary of defense for policy in the Obama administration; Madelyn Creedon, principal deputy administrator, National Nuclear Security Administration during the Obama administration; James Acton, co-director of the Nuclear Policy Program at the Carnegie Endowment; and Robert Einhorn of Brookings. Brookings Senior Fellow Michael O’Hanlon moderated the discussion, while adding his own perspective.

Following their conversation, panelists took audience questions.