National secur it y

Prevent the Spread and Use of Weapons of Mass Destruction

No threat poses as grave a danger to our security and well-being as the potential use of nuclear weapons 

and materials by irresponsible states or terrorists. We therefore seek the peace and security of a world 

without nuclear weapons. As long as nuclear weapons exist, the United States must invest the resources 

necessary to maintain—without testing—a safe, secure, and effective nuclear deterrent that preserves 

strategic stability. However, reducing the threat requires us to constantly reinforce the basic bargain of 

the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which commits nuclear weapons states to reduce their stockpiles 

while non-nuclear weapons states remain committed to using nuclear energy only for peaceful purposes. 

For our part, we are reducing the role and number of nuclear weapons through New START and our own 

strategy. We will continue to push for the entry into force of important multilateral agreements like the 

Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty and the various regional nuclear weapons-free zone protocols, 

as well as the creation of a Fissile Material Cut-Off Treaty. 

Vigilance is required to stop countries and non-state actors from developing or acquiring nuclear, 

chemical, or biological weapons, or the materials to build them. The Nuclear Security Summit process 

has catalyzed a global effort to lock down vulnerable nuclear materials and institutionalize nuclear 

security best practices. Our commitment to the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula is rooted in the 

profound risks posed by North Korean weapons development and proliferation. Our efforts to remove 

and destroy chemical weapons in Libya and Syria reflect our leadership in implementation and progress 

toward universalization of the Chemical Weapons Convention. 

We have made clear Iran must meet its international obligations and demonstrate its nuclear program 

is entirely peaceful. Our sanctions regime has demonstrated that the international community can—

and will—hold accountable those nations that do not meet their obligations, while also opening up 

a space for a diplomatic resolution. Having reached a first step arrangement that stops the progress 

of Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for limited relief, our preference is to achieve a comprehensive 

and verifiable deal that assures Iran’s nuclear program is solely for peaceful purposes. This is the best 

way to advance our interests, strengthen the global nonproliferation regime, and enable Iran to access 

peaceful nuclear energy. However, we retain all options to achieve the objective of preventing Iran from 

producing a nuclear weapon.

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