Missile Defense Project

Authoritative analysis on missile defense and related issues

The Missile Defense Project at CSIS looks at a wide range of policy, program, and strategic issues related to missile defense. Technological and geopolitical factors have driven increased global supply and demand for high-velocity, unmanned, missile-based weapons and their corresponding counters. Besides more recognized cruise and ballistic missile threats, global missile proliferation now consists of a spectrum including precision-guided rockets, anti-ship missiles, air defenses, hypersonic delivery systems, and counterspace weapons.  
 

About the Missile Defense Project

Learn more about the Missile Defense Project and the network of experts, staff, and non-resident affiliates who contribute to our analysis.

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Photo: CSIS Missile Defense Project

Photo: CSIS Missile Defense Project

Getting on Track: Space and Airborne Sensors for Hypersonic Missile Defense

The Department of Defense is racing to build a constellation of satellites for tracking elusive hypersonic missiles. As these first satellites enter orbit, how should policymakers measure success? In a new report, CSIS unpacks the tradeoffs involved and pitfalls to avoid.

Report by Masao Dahlgren — December 18, 2023

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Photo: Army photo by Capt. Adan Cazarez

Photo: Army photo by Capt. Adan Cazarez

The Defense of Guam

July 30, 2024 • 1:45 – 2:45 pm EDT
Video On Demand
Hosted by International Security Program
Photo: Courtesy of Missile Defense Agency

Photo: Courtesy of Missile Defense Agency

MDA and the 2025 Budget

June 6, 2024 • 10:00 – 11:15 am EDT
Video On Demand
Hosted by Missile Defense Project

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Long-Range Strike Systems

Missile Threat

Missile Threat brings together a wide range of information and analysis relating to the proliferation of cruise and ballistic missiles around the world and the air and missile defense systems designed to defeat them.

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AI Diffusion and Defense Production

Please join the CSIS Defense and Security Department for a conversation on the diffusion of U.S. AI capabilities in both the civilian economy and national defense, U.S.-China competition with regards to the military adoption of AI, and the potential impacts of rulemaking over open-source AI.

Event — April 2, 2025

Chinese Advances in Space Weaponization

Please join the CSIS Defense and Security Department for a conversation on the implications of Chinese advancements in space warfighting for U.S. space-based assets in an Indo-Pacific conflict.

Event — April 1, 2025

Europe's Nuclear Future

Please join the CSIS Defense and Security Department for a conversation on the future of European rearmament, nuclear deterrence, and transatlantic relations.

Event — March 11, 2025

What is the "Iron Dome for America"?

CSIS Defense and Security Department Senior Fellows Tom Karako, Heather Williams, and Kari Bingen discuss the implications of the "Iron Dome for America" executive order for the strategic force. 

Event — February 11, 2025

The Truth of the Matter

All About the Missiles

CSIS’s director of the Missile Defense Project Tom Karako joins the podcast to talk about missile escalations in the Ukraine Russia war, plus how missiles are critical to the conflicts in the Middle East.

Podcast Episode by H. Andrew Schwartz and Tom Karako — December 2, 2024

CSIS the truth of the matter

Defense Priorities in the Open-Source AI Debate

Open-source model regulation is the hottest debate in AI policy. Despite appeals made to national security, proposed constraints on open-source AI distribution might put defense supply chains at risk. This brief assesses those implications for the Joint Force.

Brief by Masao Dahlgren — August 19, 2024