The Jackson School’s Brady-Johnson Program in Grand Strategy and the Nuclear Security Initiative—part of the Blue Center for Global Strategic Assessment present
Vipin Narang, Frank Stanton Professor of Nuclear Security and Political Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and former Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense and Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Space Policy (2022-2024):
“The New Nuclear Age: Reflections from Academia and Policy.”
From March 2022 through August 2024, Narang served as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense and then Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Space Policy, a portfolio with oversight over the U.S. Department of Defense’s strategic capabilities, including nuclear, space, missile defense, and cyber policy. For his service, he was awarded the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service.
He received his Ph.D. from the Department of Government, Harvard University in 2010. He has been a fellow at Harvard University’s Olin Institute for Strategic Studies, a predoctoral fellow at Harvard University’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, and a Stanton junior faculty fellow at Stanford University’s Center for International Security and Cooperation. His research interests include nuclear proliferation and strategy, North Korea’s nuclear weapons, South Asian security, and general security studies.