Analyzing the Potential Nuclear Threat: Is It Real or Hype?

The threat of nuclear war is not new: There is an archive of nuclear threats and alerts going back to the Cold War. Those threats are raising their ugly head again. How real is this current nuclear threat?

Russia strikes a Ukrainian defense plant using new intermediate-range ballistic missiles for the first time in warfare. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy vows to retaliate. President Joe Biden has announced additional security assistance to Ukraine. Let’s not forget about U.N. International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi’s visit to Iran to discuss the country’s nuclear program.

The timing is significant—right before President-elect Donald Trump takes office. Is the nuclear threat real or hype?

Our panel, including Jed Babbin, former under secretary of defense for President George W. Bush’s administration; space policy expert Art Harman; and strategic policy and intelligence expert Clare M. Lopez, join us to discuss the answer.