The Nuclear Reality is Unsettling

Stephen Herzog is researching how nuclear weapons could be better controlled and eventually eliminated. For him, Putin's threats are a reason to fundamentally question the nuclear "balance of terror." "I research nuclear arms control." For years, this line produced blank stares in social settings as I tried to explain my job's importance. After all, nuclear weapons are quite distant from the lives of most people, particularly since the Cold War has been over for decades. Then came the invasion of Ukraine on February 24. Russian President Vladimir Putin warned that the West risked nuclear retaliation with attempts to assist Ukraine in the conflict.¹ Suddenly, my Center for Security Studies colleagues and I found ourselves explaining the world's unpleasant nuclear realities to the media and public. The nuclear dimensions of this war have created twin imperatives for researchers. First, experts must unpack facts in a way that avoids scaremongering.