US-Soviet Nuclear Security in Historical Context

The crisis in U.S.-Russia relations—and the collapse of bilateral arms control and nonproliferation cooperation—raise tough questions for policymakers today. Could resuming joint work on nuclear security build trust and ease tension between Washington and Moscow? Or must US-Russia relations stabilize before cooperation in this sensitive area can begin again? How might closer analysis and understanding of past successes (and failures) inform resolution of the current crisis?

This interdisciplinary, semester-long course will seek answers to these interlinked questions. Developed jointly by Sarah Bidgood, Eurasia nonproliferation program director at CNS, and Rebecca Mitchell, assistant professor of history at Middlebury College, it will place past examples of US-Soviet nuclear cooperation into broad historical context. Students will examine how US-Soviet nuclear security cooperation was shaped by the social and political environment in which it occurred—and explore how US-Soviet collaboration on nuclear security drove change in other areas. With an emphasis on interactive discussion and primary source analysis, this course will offer students a more holistic view of the opportunities and challenges for reviving US-Russia nuclear security cooperation today.