Hans M. Kristensen

Hans Møller Kristensen
Born (1961-04-07) April 7, 1961 (age 63)[1]
NationalityDanish[1]
EducationVesthimmerlands
Occupations
EmployerFederation of American Scientists
Known forWritings on nuclear weapons policy
TitleProject Director

Hans Møller Kristensen (born April 7, 1961) is director of the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists. He writes about nuclear weapons policy there; he is coauthor of the Nuclear Notebook[2] column in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists,[3] and the World Nuclear Forces appendix in Stockholm International Peace Research Institute's annual SIPRI Yearbook.[4]

His work especially relies on using the Freedom of Information Act to compel US government agencies to release documents. He maintains an on-line overview of the number of nuclear weapons in the world,[5] and writes frequently on the FAS Strategic Security Blog.[6]

He is critical of the development and deployment of nuclear weaponry by the United States, the United Kingdom, and France.[7] In 2005 he discovered a draft document on a Pentagon website that proposed a change in U.S. nuclear doctrine to include the possibility of a preemptive nuclear strike. Even though Secretary Rumsfeld had not approved the change, its publication provoked a reaction from some members of Congress.[8] In 2022, US President Joe Biden announced that the United States would use nuclear weapons as a first strike in "extreme circumstance," without any objection from Kristensen or the Federation of American Scientists.[9]

In 2020, an honoree of the Great Immigrants Award named by Carnegie Corporation of New York[10]

  1. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference 2007_Kristensen_CV was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference 2019_NuclearNotebook was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference 2009_Norris was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference 2007_SIPRI was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference 2019_FAS_StatusNuclearForces was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference 2019_FAS_StrategicSecurity was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference 2012_Burns was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference 2005_Pincus was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Allen, Nick; Sabur, Rozina (25 March 2022). "Joe Biden ready to use nuclear weapons first in 'extreme circumstances'". The Telegraph. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
  10. ^ "Hans M. Kristensen". Carnegie Corporation of New York. Retrieved 26 June 2024.