Hans M. Kristensen

Hans Møller Kristensen
Born (1961-04-07) April 7, 1961 (age 63)[1]
NationalityDanish[1]
EducationVesthimmerlands
Occupations
EmployerFederation of American Scientists
Known forWritings on nuclear weapons policy
TitleProject Director

Hans Møller Kristensen (born April 7, 1961) is director of the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists. He writes about nuclear weapons policy there; he is coauthor of the Nuclear Notebook[2] column in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists,[3] and the World Nuclear Forces appendix in Stockholm International Peace Research Institute's annual SIPRI Yearbook.[4]

His work especially relies on using the Freedom of Information Act to compel US government agencies to release documents. He maintains an on-line overview of the number of nuclear weapons in the world,[5] and writes frequently on the FAS Strategic Security Blog.[6]

He is critical of the development and deployment of nuclear weaponry by the United States, the United Kingdom, and France.[7] In 2005 he discovered a draft document on a Pentagon website that proposed a change in U.S. nuclear doctrine to include the possibility of a preemptive nuclear strike. Even though Secretary Rumsfeld had not approved the change, its publication provoked a reaction from some members of Congress.[8] In 2022, US President Joe Biden announced that the United States would use nuclear weapons as a first strike in "extreme circumstance," without any objection from Kristensen or the Federation of American Scientists.[9]

In 2020, an honoree of the Great Immigrants Award named by Carnegie Corporation of New York[10]

Professional history

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Curriculum Vitae - Hans M. Kristensen" (PDF). nukestrat.com. 1 October 2007. Archived (PDF) from the original on 7 April 2019. Retrieved 6 December 2019.[unreliable source?][self-published source]
  2. ^ "Nuclear Notebook". thebulletin.org. Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. 2019. Archived from the original on 6 December 2019. Retrieved 6 December 2019.
  3. ^ Norris, Robert S.; Kristensen, Hans M. (27 November 2015). "U.S. Nuclear Forces, 2009". Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. 65 (2). Taylor & Francis: 59–69. doi:10.2968/065002008. eISSN 1938-3282. ISSN 0096-3402. LCCN 48034039. OCLC 470268256.
  4. ^ Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (30 August 2007). "Appendix 12A. World nuclear forces, 2007". SIPRI Yearbook 2007: Armaments, Disarmament, and International Security. SIPRI Yearbook Series. Oxford University Press. pp. 514–577. ISBN 978-0199230211. ISSN 0953-0282. OCLC 953643904. OL 10146030M.
  5. ^ Kristensen, Hans; Korda, Matt (1 May 2019). "Status of World Nuclear Forces". fas.org. Federation of American Scientists. Archived from the original on 6 December 2019. Retrieved 6 December 2019.
  6. ^ "Strategic Security". fas.org. Federation of American Scientists. 19 November 2019. Archived from the original on 6 December 2019. Retrieved 6 December 2019.
  7. ^ Burns, Robert (26 October 2008). "US considering implications of nuclear decline". USA Today. Washington, D.C.: Gannett. ISSN 0734-7456. Archived from the original on 24 October 2012. Retrieved 6 December 2019. In an interview, Kristensen argued that even though the number is declining, the capability of remaining weapons is increasing as older missiles, for example, get new engines, guidance sets and computer software.
  8. ^ Pincus, Walter (11 September 2005). "Pentagon Revises Nuclear Strike Plan (Strategy Includes Preemptive Use Against Banned Weapons)". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. OCLC 2269358. Archived from the original on 6 March 2008. Retrieved 6 December 2019. Hans M. Kristensen, a consultant to the Natural Resources Defense Council, who discovered the document on the Pentagon Web site, said yesterday that it "emphasizes the need for a robust nuclear arsenal ready to strike on short notice including new missions." Kristensen, who has specialized for more than a decade in nuclear weapons research, said a final version of the doctrine was due in August but has not yet appeared. "This doctrine does not deliver on the Bush administration pledge of a reduced role for nuclear weapons," Kristensen said. "It provides justification for contentious concepts not proven and implies the need for Robust Nuclear Earth Penetrator (RNEP)."
  9. ^ Allen, Nick; Sabur, Rozina (25 March 2022). "Joe Biden ready to use nuclear weapons first in 'extreme circumstances'". The Telegraph. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
  10. ^ "Hans M. Kristensen". Carnegie Corporation of New York. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
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