The Arnold A. Saltzman Institute of War and Peace Studies presents:
The 16th Annual Kenneth N. Waltz Lecture in International Relations:
“Are Nuclear Weapons a Good Bet?” with Janice Stein, University of Toronto
Thursday, November 13, 2025
4:00pm-6:00pm
1512 International Affairs Building
Advance registration required.
With guest lecture by Janice Stein, Belzberg Professor of Conflict Management and Negotiation and Founding Director of the Munk School of Global Affairs, University of Toronto
Hosted by Elizabeth Saunders, Director, Arnold A. Saltzman Institute of War and Peace Studies; Professor of Political Science, Department of Political Science, Columbia University
Opening remarks by Keren Yarhi-Milo, Dean of the School of International and Public Affairs, and Adlai E. Stevenson Professor of International Relations, Columbia University
Moderated by Jack Snyder, Robert and Renée Belfer Professor of International Relations, Department of Political Science, Columbia University
Description:
The lecture will reprise Waltzian logic with new evidence to explore what precisely nuclear weapons deter. Stein will argue that nuclear weapons do not prevent limited attacks against homeland territory below the threshold of invasion. Drawing on material, normative and psychological explanations, Stein will argue that we need much more refined and contextualized theories of nuclear deterrence, and if her argument is broadly correct, then seeking to become a nuclear power may well be a poor bet.
About the lecture:
The Annual Kenneth N. Waltz Lecture in International Relations was established by the Institute in September, 2008, in celebration of Waltz’s many outstanding contributions to the field of international relations. Waltz was forever grateful to the Institute for giving him office space and collegial support while he completed his first book, Man, the State, and War. Read about the lecture here.
Campus access:
