A Commonsense Policy for Avoiding a Disastrous Nuclear Decision

Posted September 10, 2019

External Article: Carnegie Endowment

Admiral Sandy Winnefeld, USN (ret.), a distinguished professor of the practice in the Sam Nunn School, wrote "A Commonsense Policy for Avoiding a Disastrous Nuclear Decision" published by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

But the intense time pressure involved in accurately diagnosing, and then ordering and executing a response to a nuclear attack, could easily backfire catastrophically. Specifically, the time pressure inherent in this launch-under-attack approach creates two unacceptable risks: that the president might fail to respond to a real attack, or that he or she might order a nuclear response to a false warning. To address these risks, the president should be able to order a delayed response—an option I call “decide under attack.”

Find the post in the Carnegie Endowment website