Pranay Vaddi
@pranayrvaddi.bsky.social
pers acct. MIT CNSP Senior Nuclear Fellow @ssp-mit.bsky.social fmr NSC46, State Dept. nukes, nonpro, arms control. Husband + suburban dad. All tweets/rt are my views alone.
https://strategicsimplicity.substack.com/
https://strategicsimplicity.substack.com/
New on the Strategic Simplicity Podcast: Charlie Glaser joins the pod to debate damage limitation. Link below.
October 30, 2025 at 8:15 PM
New on the Strategic Simplicity Podcast: Charlie Glaser joins the pod to debate damage limitation. Link below.
New Strategic Simplicity podcast - our reactions to "A House of Dynamite." Link below:
October 29, 2025 at 9:26 PM
New Strategic Simplicity podcast - our reactions to "A House of Dynamite." Link below:
New Strategic Simplicity podcast. Taylor Fravel and Caitlin Talmadge join Austin, Vipin, and I for China Part II, where we discuss the rationales behind China's nuclear transformation (and veer into many other topics).
Link below:
Link below:
October 16, 2025 at 1:11 PM
New Strategic Simplicity podcast. Taylor Fravel and Caitlin Talmadge join Austin, Vipin, and I for China Part II, where we discuss the rationales behind China's nuclear transformation (and veer into many other topics).
Link below:
Link below:
New Strategic Simplicity podcast with Mike Albertson and John Warden on Putin's offer to stick to the New START limits for one year: we explore the policy issues likely under consideration in the U.S. government, and how the Trump administration should respond. Link(s) below:
October 9, 2025 at 7:44 PM
New Strategic Simplicity podcast with Mike Albertson and John Warden on Putin's offer to stick to the New START limits for one year: we explore the policy issues likely under consideration in the U.S. government, and how the Trump administration should respond. Link(s) below:
Two in one week - another Strategic Simplicity Podcast, this time with Toby Dalton, Francesca Giovannini, and Eric Brewer to discuss a new bipartsan task force report on preventing proliferation: "Preventing an Era of Nuclear Anarchy."
Link below.
Link below.
October 1, 2025 at 3:03 AM
Two in one week - another Strategic Simplicity Podcast, this time with Toby Dalton, Francesca Giovannini, and Eric Brewer to discuss a new bipartsan task force report on preventing proliferation: "Preventing an Era of Nuclear Anarchy."
Link below.
Link below.
New Strategic Simplicity Podcast: Catching up on Korea with Ankit Panda. Link below.
September 30, 2025 at 4:04 PM
New Strategic Simplicity Podcast: Catching up on Korea with Ankit Panda. Link below.
New Strategic Simplicity Podcast: Celeste Wallander joins to talk all things Russia and Europe. Listen at the link below:
September 26, 2025 at 9:43 PM
New Strategic Simplicity Podcast: Celeste Wallander joins to talk all things Russia and Europe. Listen at the link below:
A Marie Kondo Moment for MTCR? Tom Karako with CSIS and Ola Craft from Lowenstein Sandler join the Strategic Simplicity Podcast to discuss Tom's new article on revising the U.S. approach to missile technology controls.
September 23, 2025 at 10:49 PM
A Marie Kondo Moment for MTCR? Tom Karako with CSIS and Ola Craft from Lowenstein Sandler join the Strategic Simplicity Podcast to discuss Tom's new article on revising the U.S. approach to missile technology controls.
We're joined by Taylor Fravel and Caitlin Talmadge to talk China...or at least have 1/3 to 1/2 of a very long conversation about China. Link below.
September 12, 2025 at 3:06 PM
We're joined by Taylor Fravel and Caitlin Talmadge to talk China...or at least have 1/3 to 1/2 of a very long conversation about China. Link below.
Mailbag episode! link below
September 4, 2025 at 6:48 PM
Mailbag episode! link below
please send us questions or comments for an upcoming mailbag episode on the Strategic Simplicity Podcast
September 2, 2025 at 6:38 PM
please send us questions or comments for an upcoming mailbag episode on the Strategic Simplicity Podcast
Lowell Schwartz, a former State Department nonproliferation official and Senate Foreign Relations Comm. staffer joins the podcast to discuss how Congress oversees and shapes arms control and nuclear policy. Link below:
August 29, 2025 at 2:20 AM
Lowell Schwartz, a former State Department nonproliferation official and Senate Foreign Relations Comm. staffer joins the podcast to discuss how Congress oversees and shapes arms control and nuclear policy. Link below:
New Strategic Simplicity Podcast: Frank Miller joins Vipin and I for a conversation about future arms control policy and deterrence requirements, his long government career and the START process from a USG perspective, and many other topics. Have a listen below:
August 21, 2025 at 2:13 AM
New Strategic Simplicity Podcast: Frank Miller joins Vipin and I for a conversation about future arms control policy and deterrence requirements, his long government career and the START process from a USG perspective, and many other topics. Have a listen below:
New Strategic Simplicity Podcast: Austin, Vipin, and I catch up on current events, including tomorrow's Anchorage Summit and what it may mean for a New START follow-on agreement, among other things. Listen at the link below, of find us on Apple or Spotify.
August 14, 2025 at 8:26 PM
New Strategic Simplicity Podcast: Austin, Vipin, and I catch up on current events, including tomorrow's Anchorage Summit and what it may mean for a New START follow-on agreement, among other things. Listen at the link below, of find us on Apple or Spotify.
I sit down with Alex Bell, President and CEO of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, to talk about the nuclear policy field, her new position, and experience in government. Link below.
July 25, 2025 at 2:54 PM
I sit down with Alex Bell, President and CEO of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, to talk about the nuclear policy field, her new position, and experience in government. Link below.
New on Strategic Simplicity - Austin Long analyzes and teases out policy lessons from Able Archer 83, a well-known but not necessarily well-understood Cold War phenomenon that shapes how close we think we were to seeing the Cold War go "hot." Link below:
July 18, 2025 at 6:47 PM
New on Strategic Simplicity - Austin Long analyzes and teases out policy lessons from Able Archer 83, a well-known but not necessarily well-understood Cold War phenomenon that shapes how close we think we were to seeing the Cold War go "hot." Link below:
Austin Long joins us on the Strategic Simplicity podcast and as a new Senior Fellow at the MIT Center for Nuclear Security Policy. Link to the pod below:
July 16, 2025 at 2:17 PM
Austin Long joins us on the Strategic Simplicity podcast and as a new Senior Fellow at the MIT Center for Nuclear Security Policy. Link to the pod below:
Ola Craft joins the Strategic Simplicity Podcast to discuss MTCR policy, export controls, and defense trade streamlining. Link below:
July 10, 2025 at 2:58 PM
Ola Craft joins the Strategic Simplicity Podcast to discuss MTCR policy, export controls, and defense trade streamlining. Link below:
Vipin and I talk to Mallory Stewart and Mike Albertson about an arms control agreement after New START - the impediments to negotiations, what a future agreement may look like, how to factor in China's arsenal, what the USG should be doing to prepare, and more. Link below:
July 7, 2025 at 2:18 PM
Vipin and I talk to Mallory Stewart and Mike Albertson about an arms control agreement after New START - the impediments to negotiations, what a future agreement may look like, how to factor in China's arsenal, what the USG should be doing to prepare, and more. Link below:
Heather Williams (CSIS) takes over hosting duties at the Strategic Simplicity Podcast to discuss our recent Foreign Affairs article, "How to Survive the New Nuclear Age." Link below:
June 30, 2025 at 10:17 PM
Heather Williams (CSIS) takes over hosting duties at the Strategic Simplicity Podcast to discuss our recent Foreign Affairs article, "How to Survive the New Nuclear Age." Link below:
Vipin and I wrote a new piece for Foreign Affairs, called "How to Survive the New Nuclear Age". Gift link below.
June 24, 2025 at 7:40 PM
Vipin and I wrote a new piece for Foreign Affairs, called "How to Survive the New Nuclear Age". Gift link below.
I spoke with NTI's Eric Brewer and Carnegie's Corey Hinderstein about military action against Iran's nuclear sites, the future of the nuclear program, and broader nonproliferation implications of last week's events. Link below:
June 24, 2025 at 1:00 AM
I spoke with NTI's Eric Brewer and Carnegie's Corey Hinderstein about military action against Iran's nuclear sites, the future of the nuclear program, and broader nonproliferation implications of last week's events. Link below:
new Strategic Simplicity podcast with Heather Williams at CSIS ( @heatherwilly of @csisponi), where we discuss the current state of the NPT, arms control, and the next generation of nuclear experts. Please have a listen at the link below!
June 11, 2025 at 8:33 PM
new Strategic Simplicity podcast with Heather Williams at CSIS ( @heatherwilly of @csisponi), where we discuss the current state of the NPT, arms control, and the next generation of nuclear experts. Please have a listen at the link below!
Vipin and I were joined by Shashank Joshi, Defence Editor at The Economist, covering the new U.K. Strategic Defence Review, Ukraine's bold strikes on Russian aircraft, India-Pakistan and the risks nuclear-armed states may run in the new nuclear age, and the status of Iran talks.
June 5, 2025 at 4:15 PM
Vipin and I were joined by Shashank Joshi, Defence Editor at The Economist, covering the new U.K. Strategic Defence Review, Ukraine's bold strikes on Russian aircraft, India-Pakistan and the risks nuclear-armed states may run in the new nuclear age, and the status of Iran talks.
a light(?) conversation on what the future U.S. nuclear force could look like, the role of arms control, the costs, timelines, and challenges of nuclear modernization, particularly in a difficult security environment. We were happy to host Bob Peters and John Warden.
May 22, 2025 at 9:22 PM
a light(?) conversation on what the future U.S. nuclear force could look like, the role of arms control, the costs, timelines, and challenges of nuclear modernization, particularly in a difficult security environment. We were happy to host Bob Peters and John Warden.