Honorable Christopher Yeaw
Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Arms Control and Nonproliferation
U.S. Department of State
Dr. Christopher T. Yeaw is the Assistant Secretary of State for Arms Control and Nonproliferation. In this capacity, Dr. Yeaw leads U.S. efforts to prevent, impede, and roll back the spread of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons, their delivery systems, destabilizing advanced conventional weapons, as well as related materials and technologies. His work also includes protecting and promoting U.S. technological leadership through export controls and expanding the peaceful uses of U.S. nuclear technology. At the same time, Dr. Yeaw leads the Bureau of Arms Control and Nonproliferation’s focus on increasing global stability, reducing the risk of unintentional escalation and preventing conflict through our deterrence posture, by negotiating nuclear arms control agreements, and strengthening bans on chemical and biological weapons.
Dr. Yeaw was most recently the Associate Executive Director at the National
Strategic Research Institute (NSRI), U.S. Strategic Command’s University
Affiliated Research Center. Immediately prior to his appointment at NSRI, Dr.
Yeaw was the National Nuclear Security Administration’s Senior Policy Advisor
for Defense Programs, having served as the Department of Energy’s (DOE) lead
official in the development and rollout of the 2018 Nuclear Posture Review.
Formerly, he was the founder and director of the Center for Assurance, Deterrence,
Escalation, and Nonproliferation Science & Education (CADENSE), a nuclear
weapons think tank at the Louisiana Tech Research Institute. Immediately prior
to establishing CADENSE, Dr. Yeaw served in an Air Force senior executive role
as the first Chief Scientist of Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC),
Barksdale Air Force Base, LA.
Dr. Yeaw began his career in 1996 at the Naval Surface Warfare Center as a lead
missile defense engineer following his graduation with a Ph.D. in nuclear
engineering and engineering physics from the University of Wisconsin at Madison.
He served as a lead nuclear weapons technical intelligence officer with the Defense
Intelligence Agency, then held a variety of assignments with the State Department.
His tenure at the State Department culminated in serving as Principal Adviser for
Nuclear Matters to the Assistant Secretary for Verification and Compliance, during
which time he was a member of the first special diplomatic mission to Libya and
led the initiation of the dismantlement of its covert nuclear weapons program. He
then served as an acting Director and Chief Scientist of the Department of
Energy’s Office of Intelligence. Prior to his AFGSC’s assignment, he was an
Associate Professor and Director of the Mahan Scholars Research Program at the
Naval War College in Newport, R.I. where he also founded the STRATCOM
sponsored Deterrence and Escalation Game and Review (DEGRE) nuclear war
game series.
Dr. Yeaw was most recently the Associate Executive Director at the National
Strategic Research Institute (NSRI), U.S. Strategic Command’s University
Affiliated Research Center. Immediately prior to his appointment at NSRI, Dr.
Yeaw was the National Nuclear Security Administration’s Senior Policy Advisor
for Defense Programs, having served as the Department of Energy’s (DOE) lead
official in the development and rollout of the 2018 Nuclear Posture Review.
Formerly, he was the founder and director of the Center for Assurance, Deterrence,
Escalation, and Nonproliferation Science & Education (CADENSE), a nuclear
weapons think tank at the Louisiana Tech Research Institute. Immediately prior
to establishing CADENSE, Dr. Yeaw served in an Air Force senior executive role
as the first Chief Scientist of Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC),
Barksdale Air Force Base, LA.
Dr. Yeaw began his career in 1996 at the Naval Surface Warfare Center as a lead
missile defense engineer following his graduation with a Ph.D. in nuclear
engineering and engineering physics from the University of Wisconsin at Madison.
He served as a lead nuclear weapons technical intelligence officer with the Defense
Intelligence Agency, then held a variety of assignments with the State Department.
His tenure at the State Department culminated in serving as Principal Adviser for
Nuclear Matters to the Assistant Secretary for Verification and Compliance, during
which time he was a member of the first special diplomatic mission to Libya and
led the initiation of the dismantlement of its covert nuclear weapons program. He
then served as an acting Director and Chief Scientist of the Department of
Energy’s Office of Intelligence. Prior to his AFGSC’s assignment, he was an
Associate Professor and Director of the Mahan Scholars Research Program at the
Naval War College in Newport, R.I. where he also founded the STRATCOM
sponsored Deterrence and Escalation Game and Review (DEGRE) nuclear war
game series.