About the Author

Eric Brewer is deputy director and senior fellow with the Project on Nuclear Issues at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). He specializes in nuclear proliferation, Iran, and North Korea. Prior to joining CSIS, Mr. Brewer was a 2018-2019 Council on Foreign Relations International Affairs fellow at the Center for a New American Security. From 2017-2018, Mr. Brewer served as the director for Counterproliferation at the National Security Council (NSC), where he was responsible for coordinating U.S. policy to prevent and reverse the spread of nuclear weapons, their delivery systems, and related technologies. While at the NSC, Mr. Brewer played a lead role implementing elements of U.S. North Korea policy. From 2014 to 2017, Mr. Brewer served as deputy national intelligence officer for WMD and Proliferation at the National Intelligence Council. In that capacity, he led the Intelligence Community’s (IC) analysis of foreign nuclear weapons capabilities and intentions, proliferation trends, and over-the-horizon proliferation threats. This included IC assessments on Iran’s nuclear program during U.S. nuclear negotiations with Iran and monitoring the implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. He also represented the IC in White House meetings and briefings to Congress. From 2008 to 2014, Mr. Brewer held several positions at the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), including senior intelligence analyst for Iran. Before joining DIA, Mr. Brewer worked at the National Nuclear Security Administration. Mr. Brewer is the author of several reports, including most recently “Toward a More Proliferated World? The Geopolitical Forces that Will Shape the Spread of Nuclear Weapons.” He has authored op-eds and articles in outlets such as Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, The Atlantic, and War on the Rocks. He received an M.A. in security policy studies from the George Washington University, an M.S. in strategic intelligence from the National Intelligence University, and a B.A. in international relations from the University of San Diego.
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analysis

Seeing Red in Trump’s Iran Strategy

Iran’s nuclear actions so far do not merit a redline or the military response that could follow, nor do they rise to the level of an unacceptable threat to the United States or its interests. Rather, they are a signal that, although some in the Trump administration believe otherwise, Iran will not consent to being pushed via sanctions without seeking leverage of its own.

analysis

Iran’s Latest Nuclear Provocation: What it Means, What Comes Next.

Iran announced Monday—and international inspectors confirmed—that it had exceeded the amount of enriched uranium it can have on hand under the terms of the nuclear deal (known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action or JCPOA). The deal allows Iran to have up to 300kg of up to 3.67 percent enriched uranium hexafluoride.