{
"authors": [
"Yerzhan Ashikbayev",
"Andrew Weber",
"David E. Hoffman",
"Togzhan Kassenova"
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Project Sapphire at 30: U.S.-Kazakh Cooperation to Reduce Nuclear Threats
Wed, December 4th, 2024
Washington, DC and Live Online
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Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, weapons of mass destruction materials were scattered far and wide. In 1994, the United States and the Republic of Kazakhstan undertook a secret joint operation, now known as Project Sapphire, to secure large quantities of weapons-grade uranium and stop the proliferation of nuclear weapons, as documented in the Netflix miniseries, Turning Point: The Bomb and the Cold War.
Join the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the Council on Strategic Risks, and the Embassy of Kazakhstan as we recognize the 30th anniversary of Project Sapphire as key participants reflect on this successful effort and commemorate decades of partnership to address the risks posed by weapons of mass destruction. The discussion will feature Kazakhstan’s Ambassador to the United States of America Yerzhan Ashikbayev, former assistant secretary of defense Andrew Weber, and author of Atomic Steppe: How Kazakhstan Gave Up the Bomb, Togzhan Kassenova, a nonresident fellow in the Carnegie Endowment’s Nuclear Policy program. David E. Hoffman, author of The Dead Hand: The Untold Story of the Cold War Arms Race and its Dangerous Legacy, will moderate. A preview of the Project Sapphire miniseries will be shown.
A light lunch will be provided from 1:00 to 1:30 pm.
Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.
Event Speakers
Yerzhan Ashikbayev
Yerzhan Ashikbayev is ambassador of the Republic of Kazakhstan to the United States of America.
Andrew Weber
Andy Weber is a senior fellow at the Council on Strategic Risks’ Janne E. Nolan Center on Strategic Weapons. Mr. Weber has dedicated his professional life to countering nuclear, chemical, and biological threats and to strengthening global health security.
David E. Hoffman
Contributing Editor, The Washington Post
David E. Hoffman is a contributing editor at The Washington Post. He covered the White House during the presidencies of Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush, and was subsequently diplomatic correspondent and Jerusalem correspondent. From 1995 to 2001, he served as Moscow bureau chief, and later as foreign editor and assistant managing editor for foreign news.
Togzhan Kassenova
Nonresident Fellow, Nuclear Policy Program
Kassenova is a nonresident fellow in the Nuclear Policy Program at the Carnegie Endowment.