Taking the Long View: Perhaps Not in My Lifetime

By any measure, President Obama’s 2009 speech in Prague, Czech Republic — in which he suggested that a future without nuclear weapons was possible — represented a historic turning point for the world, and contributed to his being awarded the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize. Obama’s efforts during the next seven years included biannual Nuclear Security Summits, the elevation of diplomacy in the U.S. National Security Strategy, the negotiation of the New START Treaty to reduce Russian and U.S. nuclear stockpiles, the Iran Deal (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action [JCPOA]) and chairing the U.N. Security Council. These efforts demonstrated a resolve to move that vision forward and create a new international order.1