The 2018 UK PONI Papers

The issues surrounding nuclear weapons and nuclear energy are complex and multifaceted, and successive generations will be called upon to understand and manage them. Stakeholders from industry, the military, government and academia must therefore collectively foster the emergence of the next generation of nuclear experts and build a broad knowledge base, from technical intricacies to international security dynamics.

UK PONI aims to promote this next generation of nuclear expertise by establishing a forum where emerging and established specialists can exchange knowledge and develop fresh thinking on a range of contemporary nuclear issues. Each year, it invites emerging experts to present their research and ideas to an audience of established members of the UK nuclear community at the UK PONI Annual Conference. The presentations from the 2018 Annual Conference have been adapted by the experts for this publication.

Contents

Editor’s Note 

I. Deterrence Planning Through Artificial Intelligence 
Damon Jones

II. Self-Driving Cars? Why Not a Self-Driving Nuclear Power Station? The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Civil Nuclear Power Stations
Oliver Dawkins

III. Could a State Cyber Attack Result in Nuclear Retaliation? 
Guy Bishop

IV. Securing Operational Technology: Nuclear Critical National Infrastructure
Kirsty Nixon

V. An Argument for Capability Retention in the Event of Multilateral Disarmament 
Brogen Dawkins

VI. An Examination of the Potential Effects on Nuclear Safeguards of the UK Leaving the EU 
Patrick Ferns

VII. The Non-Proliferation and Disarmament Impacts of US Leadership on Arms Control 
Jennifer Schofield

VIII. Bridging the Transatlantic Divide: Assessing the Implications of Changes to US Declaratory Policy for European Allies 
Maxwell Downman

IX. China’s Response to the US Nuclear Posture Review 
Rose Tenyotkina

X. Anti-Satellite Technology and US–China Nuclear Deterrence Stability 
Cameron Hunter

XI. The Future of Fast Attack Submarines in the UK: Nuclear R elevance, Cost Cutting and Enrichment
James Bauld

XII. Over the Horizon Nuclear Technologies: The Rise of Hypersonic Defence 
Martin Everett

XIII. The United States Sale of Trident to the United Kingdom, 1977–1982 
Suzanne Doyle

XIV. Generational Analysis for the Recruitment and Retention of Talent Within the Nuclear Industry: A Summary 
Ben Percy and Victoria Murtland

The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not reflect the views of RUSI or any other institution.