Image: U.S. Department of Energy
ASP Signs Letter Highlighting Security Importance of US Nuclear Energy
This Tuesday, June 26, 75 former senior military officers, policymakers and business leaders signed a letter to Secretary of Energy Rick Perry, urging him to recognize the national security importance of U.S. nuclear energy.
Several distinguished members of ASP’s staff and board of directors were included among the signatories. Governor Christine Todd Whitman, Chairperson of ASP’s Board of Directors and former Governor of New Jersey, Brigadier General Stephen Cheney, USMC (Ret.), ASP’s CEO and a former Marine Corps commander, Norman Augustine, a member of ASP’s board and former CEO of Lockheed Martin, and Mr. Andrew Holland, ASP’s Director of Studies and Senior Fellow for Energy and Climate, all signed on.
Additionally, two members of ASP’s Consensus for American Security, coalition of military and national security leaders dedicated to a smart and comprehensive 21st century national security strategy, also signed on. Secretary George Shultz, former Secretary of Labor, Treasury, State, and Lieutenant General Norman Seip, USAF (Ret.), a former Air Force commander, added their names to the list of nuclear energy supporters.
The letter to Secretary Perry lists 5 key reasons why a strong nuclear sector is essential to American national security:
- Nuclear power is an important and reliable source of energy for the U.S. electrical grid, providing fuel diversity that reduces our dependence on any one energy source.
- Nuclear power is the nation’s largest source of emissions-free energy, mitigating the national security threat posed by climate change.
- The nuclear energy industry supports important national security organizations, like the Navy and parts of the Department of Energy, as well as providing jobs for many veterans.
- A strong nuclear sector keeps us internationally competitive, at a time when China and Russia are driving nuclear advances worldwide.
- A strong nuclear sector supports our international cooperation on key global security issues, like nonproliferation, nuclear safety, and physical and cyber security.
The letter was drafted by the Nuclear Energy Institute, which supports not only nuclear energy generation, but also nuclear medicine, nuclear waste management, and many other segments of America’s nuclear industry.
It is essential that Secretary Perry and the Department of Energy recognize the importance of nuclear power to American national security, and listen to the many experts from diverse organizations who have signed this letter.
