A central priority of the Center for Strategic Deterrence and Weapons of Mass Destruction Studies (CSDWMDS) is to advance rigorous analysis and policy engagement that strengthens the United States’ (US) capacity for strategic deterrence in an era characterized by renewed great-power competition and rapidly evolving weapons technologies. The 2026 National Defense Authorization Act underscores that effective national defense now depends upon integrated approaches that deter strategic attack in and across all key strategic domains (protecting the homeland, space, and cyberspace) and against all forms of strategic attack (nuclear and non-nuclear). This includes deterring potential adversaries from employing weapons of mass destruction (nuclear, biological, or chemical), while concomitantly addressing emerging dual-use technologies and non-traditional pathways to mass destruction, mass casualty, and/or maximal disruption.
Within this context, the Center’s mission is to study weapons of mass destruction as discrete technical threats, and to provide interdisciplinary research, education, and policy support that enable senior Department and US federal government leaders to understand how deterrence can be maintained amid shifting technological and geopolitical conditions. Through strategic analyses, expert convening, and engagement with the broader national security community, the Center examines how adversaries may employ current and emerging capabilities to alter the strategic balance of global power, and how the US and its allies can deter such actions through credible capabilities, informed policy, and coordinated whole-of-nation approaches.
In this way, the Center directly contributes to the Department of War’s deterrence posture. Directly supported by the INSS Programs in Disruptive Technology and Future Warfare, and Homeland Defense, the Center serves as a vital intellectual and policy resource for strengthening US preparedness, informing joint professional military education, and ensuring that strategic deterrence remains robust in the face of emerging threats.
Read our Strategic Deterrence publications.