FAS Roundup: October 20, 2015

Stay tuned for the October 2015 FAS Nuclear Notebook, available for viewing on fas.org tomorrow.

Co-authored by Hans M. Kristensen and Robert S. Norris and published bi-monthly in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, each issue of the Nuclear Notebook provides a snapshot of a nuclear-armed country weapons programs or a global nuclear weapons matter. This issue provides a new overview of Pakistan’s nuclear forces at the same time the Obama administration is seeking ways to limit Pakistan’s arsenal during Pakistani Prime Minister Sharif’s visit to Washington on October 22, 2015.

From the Blogs

GAO Posts Titles of Restricted Reports: The Government Accountability Office this week quietly published a list of titles of its restricted reports that have not been publicly released because they contain classified information or controlled unclassified information.  A new link to “Restricted Products” appears at the bottom of the GAO homepage (under Reports & Testimonies).

The Internet of Things, and More from CRS: New and updated reports from the Congressional Research Service.

Russia’s Open Skies Flights Prompt DIA “Concern”: Ideally, arms control agreements that are well-conceived and faithfully implemented will foster international stability and build confidence between nations. But things don’t always work out that way, and arms control itself can become a cause for suspicion and conflict. The Open Skies Treaty, to which the United States and Russia are parties, entered into force in 2002. It allows member states to conduct overflights of other members’ territories in order to monitor their military forces and activities.

Defense Science Board on Avoiding Strategic Surprise: The Department of Defense needs to take several steps in order to avoid “strategic surprise” by an adversary over the coming decade, according to a new study from the Defense Science Board, a Pentagon advisory body. Among those steps, “Counterintelligence must be enhanced with urgency.” See DSB Summer Study Report on Strategic Surprise, July 2015.

FAS in the News

• Oct 16: Roll Call: Hill Blotter, GAO Releases List of Restricted Reports
• Oct 15: Gizmodo, Why Was This Drone Strike “Kill Chain” Classified?
• Oct 15: New York Times Magazine, What Do We Really Know About Osama bin Laden’s Death?
• Oct 15: euronews, Iran shows deep bunker missiles — ‘deterrence measures’
• Oct 13: Vice News, Chelsea Manning Is Suing the Government to Get Her FBI File
• Oct 12:  Letter in support of Mordechai Vanunu’s right to emigrate
• Oct 12: Politico, Clinton’s email woes won’t go away