• Research
  • Strategic Europe
  • About
  • Experts
Carnegie Europe logoCarnegie lettermark logo
EUUkraine
  • Donate
{
  "authors": [
    "Ulrich Kühn"
  ],
  "type": "other",
  "centerAffiliationAll": "dc",
  "centers": [
    "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace"
  ],
  "collections": [],
  "englishNewsletterAll": "ctw",
  "nonEnglishNewsletterAll": "",
  "primaryCenter": "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
  "programAffiliation": "NPP",
  "programs": [
    "Nuclear Policy"
  ],
  "projects": [],
  "regions": [
    "Russia",
    "Eastern Europe",
    "Western Europe"
  ],
  "topics": [
    "Nuclear Policy"
  ]
}

Source: Getty

Other

Perceptions in the Euro-Atlantic

Nuclear risk reduction efforts in the Euro-Atlantic should begin with the Russian Federation and the United States ensuring they retain what is left of nuclear arms control and transparency.

Link Copied
By Ulrich Kühn
Published on Nov 9, 2020

Source: UNIDIR

Risk of nuclear weapon use—be it deliberate use in an escalating crisis or war, in accordance with circumstances set out in nuclear doctrines, or due to inadvertent events—has grown in the Euro-Atlantic, mainly as a function of the resurgent strategic competition between the Russian Federation and the United States. Asymmetries in risk perceptions and developments in military capabilities are driving real and perceived insecurities. In this tense environment, (mis)interpretation of nuclear doctrines, coupled with poor risk analysis, could become self-fulfilling prophecies. This policy brief discusses sources of political volatility, outlines some of the risk drivers, and suggests measures in support of nuclear risk reduction in the Euro-Atlantic.

Read Full Text

This article was originally published by UNIDIR.

About the Author

Ulrich Kühn

Former Nonresident Scholar, Nuclear Policy Program

Ulrich Kühn was a nonresident scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and the head of the arms control and emerging technologies program at the Institute for Peace Research and Security Policy at the University of Hamburg.

    Recent Work

  • Commentary
    Why Arms Control Is (Almost) Dead

      Ulrich Kühn

  • Report
    Preventing Escalation in the Baltics: A NATO Playbook

      Ulrich Kühn

Ulrich Kühn
Former Nonresident Scholar, Nuclear Policy Program
Ulrich Kühn
Nuclear PolicyRussiaEastern EuropeWestern Europe

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.

More Work from Carnegie Europe

  • The Scramble for Europe. Russia, China, and Turkey Challenging Regional Order
    Book
    The Scramble for Europe. Russia, China, and Turkey Challenging Regional Order

    Europe is facing rising populism internally as well as external pressures from Russia, China, Turkey, and the United States.

      Dimitar Bechev

  • European Union EU democracy Parliament citizens assembly
    Article
    Europe’s Tide of Citizen Assemblies: Unsung Success or Anticlimax?

    A notable degree of participative democracy has firmly arrived in Europe. But to have more far-reaching impact, democratic deliberation needs to move into a radically new phase.

      Richard Youngs

  • Ukraine Poland Zelensky Tusk Enlargement EU
    Commentary
    Strategic Europe
    The Uncomfortable Truth About EU Enlargement

    Before the next wave of EU enlargement takes place, the union needs to grapple with thorny questions of how power is distributed among its members.

      • Ditte Brasso Sørensen

      Emil Sondaj Hansen, Ditte Brasso Sørensen

  • Ukraine Russia Black Sea Food
    Commentary
    Strategic Europe
    A Black Sea Truce Is About Global Food Security, Too

    A summer of escalation in the Black Sea has hurt Ukraine economically and is exacerbating world food security. A truce is needed—as is a broader reframing of Europe’s Ukraine strategy.

      Thomas de Waal

  • Commentary
    Strategic Europe
    Taking the Pulse: Does the EU Have a Germany Problem?

    Are Germany’s economic, industrial, and political struggles becoming a liability for the EU’s ability to rise to the geopolitical moment?

      • Rym Momtaz

      Rym Momtaz, ed.

Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie Europe
Carnegie Europe logo, white
Rue du Congrès, 151000 Brussels, Belgium
  • Research
  • Strategic Europe
  • About
  • Experts
  • Projects
  • Events
  • Contact
  • Careers
  • Privacy
  • For Media
  • Gender Equality Plan
Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie Europe
© 2026 Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. All rights reserved.