Joseph Cirincione (, (born November 13, 1949) is a national security analyst and author. He served as the president of the Ploughshares Fund, a public grant-making foundation focused on nuclear nonproliferation and conflict resolution. He has one son, Peter Cirincione, who teaches government classes at Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Career

Cirincione was appointed president of Ploughshares Fund on March 5, 2008. He retired from the position on July 1, 2020. He joined the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft as a non-resident fellow in September 2020, and is an adjunct faculty member at the

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...

School of Foreign Service. He resigned from the Quincy Institute in August 2022 in protest of its dovish response to the

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...

, which he described as "a completely unjustified, unprovoked invasion of a sovereign state". He is the author or editor of seven books, including ''Nuclear Nightmares: Securing the World Before It Is Too Late'' (Columbia University Press, 2013), ''Bomb Scare: The History and Future of Nuclear Weapons'' (Columbia University Press, 2007) and ''Deadly Arsenals: Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Threats'' (Carnegie Endowment, second edition 2006) and the co-author of ''Universal Compliance: A Strategy for Nuclear Security'' (Carnegie Endowment, 2005). Cirincione is also the author of over eight hundred articles and reports on defense and national security. Cirincione has advocated for negotiations to end the diplomatic stalemate regarding the

nuclear program of Iran The nuclear program of Iran is one of the most scrutinized nuclear programs in the world. The military capabilities of the program are possible through its mass enrichment activities in facilities such as Natanz and Arak. In June 2025, t ...

. In 2009, he appeared on ''

The Colbert Report ''The Colbert Report'' ( ) is an American late night television, late-night Late-night talk show, talk and news satire television program hosted by Stephen Colbert that aired four days a week on Comedy Central from October 17, 2005, to December ...

''. While at Ploughshares Fund, Cirincione was also the host of the nuclear security podcast, ''Press The Button''. Cirincione previously served as vice president for national security and international policy at the

Center for American Progress The Center for American Progress (CAP) is a public policy think tank, research and advocacy organization which presents a Modern liberalism in the United States, liberal viewpoint on Economic policy, economic and social issues. CAP is headquarter ...

Washington, DC Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...

. For eight years, he was the director for non-proliferation at the

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (CEIP) is a nonpartisan international affairs think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C., with operations in Europe, South Asia, East Asia, and the Middle East, as well as the United States. Foun ...

, where he chaired and organized five annual Carnegie International Non-Proliferation Conferences. The 2005 conference included Cirincione's presentation, "A Brief History of the Atomic Age." He worked for nine years in the U.S. House of Representatives, beginning in 1985 as a professional staff member of the Committee on Armed Services. He also served as a staff member of the Committee on Government Operations, and served as staff director of the bipartisan Military Reform Caucus.

References

External links

Ploughshares FundCarnegie Endowment Staff Bio
* *''Defense One'
author archive
*''The National Interest'
author archive
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cirincione, Joseph 1949 births Living people American anti–nuclear weapons activists Walsh School of Foreign Service faculty