Averting a Proliferation Cascade: The U.S.-Australia Alliance and Strategic Deterrence

Nuclear weapons, long a feature of Australia’s strategic environment, are taking on new geopolitical salience across the globe. The emerging status quo is one in which there are few limitations on the major powers’ nuclear arsenals. Vertical proliferation is virtually assured and horizontal proliferation is a real risk. Should the U.S. nuclear umbrella become less credible as the Chinese and Russian nuclear arsenals advance, Indo-Pacific countries, including Australia, will perceive growing incentives—or pressures—to develop their own nuclear weapons programs.

Those pressures can be averted. Although the United States alone sets its nuclear strategy, nuclear force structure, and nuclear force posture, Australia and the United States can build on longstanding strategic deterrence cooperation in ways that enhance each country’s security and mitigate proliferation pressures. Unilateral Australian policies can likewise contribute to strategic deterrence. To maintain a stable nuclear balance and a credible American nuclear umbrella, Indo-Pacific allies like Australia will have to step up in new and innovative ways.

Read the report to see an assessment of Australia’s nuclear security environment and key steps that Australia can take to reinforce America’s nuclear umbrella and enhance strategic deterrence.

Averting-a-Proliferation-Cascade_The-US-Australia-Alliance-and-Strategic-Deterrence