Stanford University

The Center for International Security and Cooperation (CISAC) at Stanford University is an interdisciplinary research and training center that provides policymakers in the US and abroad with independent advice on some of the world's most difficult security problems. A grant to the Center for International Security and Cooperation would allow CISAC's nuclear experts to embark on an important joint project with the Russian Committee of Scientists for Global Security and Arms Control to develop and assess proposals for US/NATO-Russian cooperation on ballistic missile defense. The US and Russian experts on missile defenses will meet over the course of a year to assess the current and future ballistic missile threats to the United States, NATO countries and Russia, examine the role of BMD in past and present military doctrines for each country, and analyze the role that BMD might play in going to lower numbers of deployed nuclear warheads. Finally, the project will search for agreed upon politically and technically sound recommendations for the US and Russian governments in the realm of ballistic missile defense. The project could help move the next round of US-Russian negotiations forward by providing realistic options for dealing with one of the most problematic strategic issues between the two countries.