Articles, Essays, & Columns

International Relations Theory; Defensive Realism

Fear Factor: How to Know When You’re in a Security Dilemma,” Foreign Affairs, Vol. 103, No. 4 (July/August 2024), pp. 122-128.

A Flawed Framework: Why the Liberal International Order Concept is Misguided,” International Security, Vol. 43, No. 4 (Spring 2019), pp. 51-87.

Realism” in Alan Collins, ed., Contemporary Security Studies, 5th edition, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2019).

Correspondence: Can Great Powers Discern Intentions?,” with Andrew H. Kydd, International Security (Winter 2015/16), Vol. 40, No. 3, pp. 197-215.

Defending RTIP Without Offending Unnecessarily,” Security Studies, Vol. 20, No. 3 (July-September 2011), pp. 469-489.

Why Unipolarity Doesn’t Matter (Much),” Cambridge Review of International Affairs, Vol. 24, No. 2 (June 2011), pp. 135-147.

“When Are Arms Races Dangerous? Rational versus Suboptimal Arming,” International Security, Vo. 28, No. 4 (Spring 2004), pp. 44-84.

Structural Realism in a More Complex World,” Review of International Studies (July 2003), pp. 403-414.

The Causes and Consequences of Arms Races,” in Nelson Polsby, ed., Annual Review of Political Science, Vol. 3 (Palo Alto: Annual Reviews, 2000), pp. 251-276.

Correspondence: Taking Offense at Offense-Defense Theory,” with Chaim Kaufmann, International Security, Vol. 23, No. 3, (Winter 1998/99), pp. 200-206.

What is the Offense-Defense Balance and Can We Measure It?,” with Chaim Kaufmann, International Security, Vol. 22, No. 4 (Spring 1998), pp. 44-82.

"The Security Dilemma Revisited," World Politics, Fiftieth Anniversary Special Issue, Vol. 50,
No. 1 (October 1997), pp. 171-201.

Correspondence: ‘Current Gains and Future Outcomes’,” International Security, Vol. 21, No. 4 (Spring 1997), pp. 186-193.

"Realists as Optimists: Cooperation as Self-Help," International Security, Vol. 19, No. 3 (Winter 1994/95), pp. 50-90.

"Political Consequences of Military Strategy: Expanding and Refining the Spiral and Deterrence Models," World Politics, Vol. 44, No. 4 (July 1992).

Nuclear Strategy and Forces

The U.S. Nuclear Arsenal Can Deter Both China and Russia: Why America Doesn’t Need More Missiles,” with James Acton and Steve Fetter, Foreign Affairs (October 5, 2023).

Legal, but Lethal: The Law of Armed Conflict and U.S. Nuclear Strategy,” with Steve Fetter, The Washington Quarterly, Vol. 45, No. 1 (Spring 2022), pp. 25-37.

Correspondence: The Limits of Damage Limitation,” with Steve Fetter, International Security, Vol. 42, No. 1 (Summer 2017), pp. 193-207.

Should the United States Reject MAD? Damage Limitation and U.S. Nuclear Strategy toward China,” with Steve Fetter, International Security, Vol. 41, No. 1 (Summer 2016), pp. 49-98.

The Instability of Small Numbers Revisited: Prospects for Disarmament and Nonproliferation,” in Michael May, ed., Rebuilding the NPT Consensus (CISAC Report, Stanford University April 2008).

Counterforce Revisited: Assessing the Nuclear Posture Review’s New Missions,” with Steve Fetter, International Security, Vol. 30, No. 2 (Fall 2005), pp. 84-126.

“Correspondence:  The Case for Limited National and Allied Missile Defense,” with Steve Fetter, International Security, Vol. 26, No. 4 (Spring 2002), pp. 196-201.

National Missile Defense and the Future of U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy,” with Steve Fetter, International Security, Vol. 26, No. 1 (Summer 2001), pp. 40-92.

The Flawed Case for Nuclear Disarmament,” Survival, Vol. 40, No. 1 (Spring 1998), pp. 112-28.

"Nuclear Policy Without an Adversary: U.S. Planning for the Post-Soviet Era," International Security, Vol. 16, No. 4 (Spring 1992).

"Do We Want the Missile Defenses We Can Build?," International Security, Vol. 10, No. 1 (Summer 1985), pp. 25-57.

"Why Even Good Defenses May Be Bad," International Security, Vol. 9, No. 2 (Fall 1984), pp. 92-123.

"ICBM Vulnerability: The Cures Are Worse Than the Disease," with Albert Carnesale, International Security, Vol. 7, No. 1 (Summer 1982), pp. 70-85.

Commentary on the Nuclear Literature

US Policy Toward China

How Much Risk Should the United States Run in the South China Sea,” with Taylor Fravel, International Security, Vol. 47, No. 2 (Fall 2022), pp. 88-134.

Still Waiting for a Serious Debate on Taiwan,” Foreign Policy (May 19, 2021).

Washington is Avoiding the Tough Questions of Taiwan and China: The Case for Reconsidering U.S. Commitments in East Asia,” Foreign Affairs (April 28, 2021).

Correspondence: The Limits of Damage Limitation,” Charles L. Glaser and Steve Fetter, International Security, Vol. 42, No. 1 (Summer 2017), pp. 193-207.

Should the United States Reject MAD? Damage Limitation and U.S. Nuclear Strategy toward China,” with Steve Fetter, International Security, Vol. 41, No. 1 (Summer 2016), pp. 49-98

“Correspondence: Grand Bargain or Bad Idea? U.S. Relations with China and Taiwan,” International Security, Vol. 40, No. 4 (Spring 2016), pp. 178-191.

A U.S.-China Grand Bargain? The Hard Choice between Military Competition and AccommodationInternational Security, Vol. 39, No. 4 (Spring 2015), pp. 49-90.

“Time for a U.S.-China Grand Bargain.” Policy Brief, Belfer Center for International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School, July 2015.

Will China’s Rise Lead to War?: Why Realism Does Not Mean Pessimism,” Foreign Affairs, Vol. 90, No. 2 (March/April 2011).

Other Policy Issues: Energy, Cyber, NATO

Getting Out of the Gulf: Oil and U.S. Military Strategy,” with Rosemary A. Kelanic, Foreign Affairs, Vol. 96, No. 1 (January-February 2017).

How Oil Influences U.S. National Security,” International Security, Vol. 38, No. 2 (Fall 2013), pp. 112-146.

The Role of Effects, Saliencies, and Norms in U.S. Cyberwar Doctrine,” Henry Farrell and Charles L. Glaser, Journal of Cyber Security, Vol. 3, No. 1 (March 2017), pp. 7-17.

Deterrence of Cyber Attacks and U.S. National Security,” CSPRI Report (June 2011).

"Why NATO is Still Best: Future Security Arrangements for Europe," International Security, Vol. 18, No. 1 (Summer 1993), pp. 5-50.

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