Project on Nuclear Issues

Founded in 2003, PONI is the premier networked community of next generation professionals prepared to meet the nuclear challenges of the future

PONI programs provide creative opportunities for emerging experts from a wide range of backgrounds to learn about nuclear issues and engage thoughtfully with the nuclear community. PONI also conducts cutting-edge research and analysis on three main topic areas: deterrence and escalation, risk reduction and arms control, and disarmament.

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Next Generation Nuclear Network

CSIS launched the Project on Nuclear Issues in 2003 to develop the next generation of policy, technical and operational nuclear professionals through outreach, mentorship, research and debate.

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HTK Series

Real-time context and forward-looking analysis on strategic forces issues, including nuclear deterrence, missile defense, and space security.

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Photo: iLab/CSIS

Photo: iLab/CSIS

Game On: Opportunities for Euro-Atlantic Strategic Stability and Arms Control

Europe is likely to remain a theater of instability despite pressure for a peace settlement in Ukraine. As the United States shifts toward the Indo-Pacific and Russia continues to pursue its territorial ambitions, what might arms control look like after the war in Ukraine?

Report by Heather Williams, Nicholas Adamopoulos, Lachlan MacKenzie, and Catherine Murphy — April 21, 2025

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Unpacking China’s Recent SLBM Test into the Pacific

On July 6th, China tested a submarine-launched intercontinental ballistic missile from the South China Sea into the Pacific, marking the first time China has ever launched a submarine-launched ballistic missile into international open waters. Mr. Joseph Rodgers, Dr. Bonny Lin, and Dr. Charles Edel discuss the details of the launch, including how China broke with established international code of conduct, what drove China to conduct the missile test, and how regional countries have responded to China’s provocative and destabilizing action.

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Featured Project: Deterrence 101

Deterrence 101 is a collection of three thirty-minute long videos that explore core deterrence theory. Each video describes basic deterrence concepts, roots these ideas in a historical timeline, and features interviews with leading nuclear policy experts.

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PONI 2026 Fall Conference

PONI's Fall Conference convenes rising nuclear experts to examine a strained global nuclear order — the future of arms control, the nonproliferation regime, verification, deterrence, and restraint. 

Event — November 17, 2026

Nuclear Statecraft: The Saudi Deal and U.S.-China Competition

The proposed U.S.-Saudi civil nuclear agreement has both risks and opportunities for U.S. national security. What would Washington gain? How might it affect global nonproliferation norms, or shape global interests in nuclear defense capacity? How might it impact U.S. competition with China?

Commentary by Heather Williams and Jane Nakano — September 16, 2026

Space Launch Capacity and Contenders | HTK

Please join the CSIS Defense and Security Department’s HTK Series for a conversation about recent developments in U.S. and Chinese space launch capabilities. 

Event — September 9, 2026