Are nuclear weapons useful for coercion? If so, what factors increase the credibility and effectiveness of nuclear threats? Read the latest research from CMIST’s @joshschwartz.bsky.social and UPenn's @mchorowitz.bsky.social in International Organization.
Read: www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
Excited to share a new article in @iojournal.bsky.social with @mchorowitz.bsky.social! We evaluate the risk of states using automated nuclear launch systems to facilitate revisionist coercive efforts. Unfortunately, we find the danger is real and should be taken seriously
doi.org/10.1017/S002...
As President Trump withdraws the US from intl agreements - including the Paris Agreement and WHO - Lotem Bassan-Nygate and I ask how this affects public opinion towards cooperation? We descibe our recent findings in @goodauth.bsky.social : tinyurl.com/goodauth @harvardkennedy.bsky.social 1/4
Excited to share a new article in @iojournal.bsky.social with @mchorowitz.bsky.social! We evaluate the risk of states using automated nuclear launch systems to facilitate revisionist coercive efforts. Unfortunately, we find the danger is real and should be taken seriously
doi.org/10.1017/S002...
What factors increase the credibility and effectiveness of nuclear threats? New research by CMIST’s @joshschwartz.bsky.social and UPenn's @mchorowitz.bsky.social highlights the dangers of countries adopting automated nuclear systems for malign purposes.
Read: www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
Automated nuclear weapons systems are not just a Hollywood plot device.
In this #Firstview article, @joshschwartz.bsky.social and @mchorowitz.bsky.social evaluate how they could impact the credibility and effectiveness of nuclear threats.
www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
#OpenAccess from @iojournal.bsky.social -
Delegating Destruction: Coercive Threats and Automated Nuclear Systems - https://cup.org/49YGNct
- @joshschwartz.bsky.social & @mchorowitz.bsky.social
#FirstView
“We find concerning evidence that automated nuclear weapons launch systems may enhance the credibility and effectiveness of nuclear threats,” write @joshschwartz.bsky.social, SSP visiting scholar, & @mchorowitz.bsky.social in their latest article for International Organization https://bit.ly/3LLxxPA
Interested in teaching an engaging but rigorous course on American foreign policy and film? Check out my guide for how to do so in @jpseeditors.bsky.social. First 50 readers get free access!
www.tandfonline.com/eprint/YX3CZ...
@dandrezner.bsky.social We need the toddler-in-chief thread back for its pièce de résistance!
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/19/w...
Wondering how domestic polarization is bleeding over into foreign policy? Interested in why Trump is cozying up to right-wing countries like El Salvador + Russia while menacing left-wing Venezuela + Denmark? Check out my updated working paper w/ Dom Tierney
preprints.apsanet.org/engage/apsa/...
"The use of history to shed light on current events can be dangerously misleading. The parallels are never exactly parallel." Read the latest from CMIST’s @joshschwartz.bsky.social and Paul Lendway at Stanford, via Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: www.post-gazette.com/opinion/insi...
"However, neither Iraq nor Panama offers a perfect match to the present situation. The use of history to shed light on current events can be dangerously misleading. The parallels are never exactly parallel." @joshschwartz.bsky.social & Paul Lendway
www.post-gazette.com/opinion/insi...
Pass
Historical analogies are omnipresent in foreign policy debates—like accusations that Trump's Russia-Ukraine peace plan is akin to appeasing Hitler. But are analogies an effective rhetorical tool? Check out my new article w/ @chriswblair.bsky.social & Paul Lendway.
doi.org/10.1177/0022...
Do historical analogies shape public opinion about foreign policymaking? Read the latest research by @chriswblair.bsky.social, Paul Lendway, and CMIST's @joshschwartz.bsky.social in the Journal of Conflict Resolution. journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
Historical analogies are omnipresent in foreign policy debates—like accusations that Trump's Russia-Ukraine peace plan is akin to appeasing Hitler. But are analogies an effective rhetorical tool? Check out my new article w/ @chriswblair.bsky.social & Paul Lendway.
doi.org/10.1177/0022...
What real-world lessons, if any, can we draw from the recent nuclear film "A House of Dynamite?" CMIST's @joshschwartz.bsky.social cautions that the film’s core dilemma is a false one. Read his analysis, today in Modern War Institute mwi.westpoint.edu/the-false-ch...
Netflix’s House of Dynamite is great drama, but terrible nuclear strategy. Hopefully real-world policymakers are more savvy than the fictional ones in the film. Our survival could depend on it! Check out my take t.co/eQbzUrXUFM
“History shows that staying power — not striking an invader’s homeland — is how the weak beat the strong.” Read the latest from CMIST’s @joshschwartz.bsky.social on why it is possible for Ukraine to win without attacking Russia, today in @post-gazette.com. www.post-gazette.com/opinion/gues...
The file drawer problem and reviewer bias against null effects is real, but we should try and fight against it as a discipline. Non-findings can teach us just as much as significant findings! t.co/Q9BqPYoTGc
Really grateful for @environmentalpol.bsky.social
shortlisting my co-authored piece on fossil fuel divestment and public opinion for the best article of the year award. Check it out for an example of a published paper that finds null effects
***Announcement***
The Summer 2025 issue is online!
Read articles by @drsarahphillips.bsky.social and Daniel Tower; @daveckang.bsky.social, Jackie S. H. Wong, and @zenobiachan.bsky.social; Wu Riqiang; Nick Anderson and Daryl Press; and Henrik Hiim and Øystein Tunsjø
direct.mit.edu/isec/issue
🚨 It’s publication day!
THE ART OF COERCION is finally out.
When do threats work? When they are perceived as credibly *conditional*. Credible and painful punishments are not enough.
Threats fail if targets feel “damned if they do and damned if they don’t.”
shorturl.at/qa4T5
Congrats, Dr. Alam!
I sat down with @joshschwartz.bsky.social to discuss a bunch of big issues with drones: the frontlines in Ukraine, Russian targeting of Ukrainian cities, Operation Spiderweb, the Israel-Iran War, and U.S. investment decisions on drones.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Femj...
How can the United States adapt to the changing nature of war? Read the latest by @mchorowitz.bsky.social, @laurenakahn.bsky.social, and CMIST’s @joshschwartz.bsky.social in @foreignaffairs.com www.foreignaffairs.com/united-state...
And you can find the syllabus with readings and assignments here: www.joshuaaschwartz.com/uploads/1/3/...
Want to teach a rigorous—but fun + engaging—course on American foreign policy through the lens of film? I outline how to do so in a new article in @jpseeditors.bsky.social! From Dr. Strangelove & Battle of Algiers to Mulan & Star Trek, there's lots of connections
www.tandfonline.com/eprint/YX3CZ...
How can the United States prepare for the future of warfare? Read the latest by @mchorowitz.bsky.social, @laurenakahn.bsky.social, and CMIST’s @joshschwartz.bsky.social in @foreignaffairs.com on how the U.S. can adapt to the changing nature of war www.foreignaffairs.com/united-state...
