chemical and biological weapons,
iran’s nuclear program
Christopher A. Bidwell, JD is a Senior Fellow for Nonproliferation Law and Policy at FAS. He recently retired from the U.S. Navy where his last key assignment was as National Security Counselor at an internal DoD think tank (DTRA-ASCO) dedicated to the study of WMD and Nonproliferation issues. Bidwell is also an accomplished civilian litigation attorney and has focused his efforts on the interplay between law and WMD for the last several years.
He is especially knowledgeable on issues related to attribution, deterrence, WMD free zones, sanctions, anticipatory self-defense and the Middle East region in general. He has lectured/spoken at several universities and academic fora throughout the world on nonproliferation issues and has taught courses on nonproliferation at Georgetown University.
Bidwell is an active member of the California Bar and currently serves as Chair of the Nonproliferation, Arms Control and Disarmament Interest Group of the American Society of International Law.
The FY2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) paints a picture of a Congress that is working to both protect and accelerate nuclear modernization programs while simultaneously lacking trust in the Pentagon and the Department of Energy to execute them.
While advanced Chinese language proficiency and cultural familiarity remain irreplaceable skills, they are neither necessary nor sufficient for successful open-source analysis on China’s nuclear forces.
Satellite imagery has long served as a tool for observing on-the-ground activity worldwide, and offers especially valuable insights into the operation, development, and physical features related to nuclear technology.
This report outlines a framework relying on “Cooperative Technical Means” for effective arms control verification based on remote sensing, avoiding on-site inspections but maintaining a level of transparency that allows for immediate detection of changes in nuclear posture or a significant build-up above agreed limits.
The goal of this Task Force report is to offer findings and make recommendations regarding nonproliferation monitoring and verification in general; our observations are grounded in large part on the Task Force’s continued attention to nonproliferation developments such as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) between the P5+1 and Iran, nuclear developments in North […]
Most of the world (including the U.S.) seems to be relieved now that there is affirmative progress towards eliminating Syria’s ghastly chemical weapon (CW) stockpiles, thereby avoiding (at least for now) a military strike that no one really wanted to undertake. The Syrian government has announced that it will soon join the Organization for the […]