Tom

Plant

Tom Plant joined RUSI in June 2017 as the Director of its Proliferation and Nuclear Policy programme.  His research interests include nuclear deterrence, arms control, proliferation issues – particularly in relation to North Korea – and UK nuclear policy. He is also Director of the UK Project on Nuclear Issues (PONI), a cross-generational network of over 900 members which encourages young scholars and professionals to engage with established experts on contemporary nuclear issues

Before joining RUSI he was a Principal Specialist at the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE), where he was responsible for technical oversight of arms control verification research programmes, including collaborations and exchanges with counterparts in China, Norway, Sweden and the US. Prior to that he held various posts at the Ministry of Defence and Foreign and Commonwealth Office, mostly focussed on non- and counter-proliferation issues in East Asia and the Middle East. During this time he spent a year seconded to King’s College London as a Research Fellow, working on a UK-funded project in support of the International Atomic Energy Agency, and remains a Visiting Senior Research Fellow with The Policy Institute at King’s.  He holds a Masters in Natural Sciences from the University of Cambridge and a Postgraduate Certificate in Systems Engineering from Cranfield University.