[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 138 (Tuesday, December 7, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2171]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page E2171]]
  HONORING FRANK VON HIPPEL, RECIPIENT OF THE GEORGE F. KENNAN PEACE 
                            LEADERSHIP AWARD

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. RUSH D. HOLT

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, December 7, 2004

  Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, Frank von Hippel, a physicist and professor of 
public and international affairs at Princeton University, has had, and 
continues to have, a far-reaching influence on arms control and nuclear 
policy. He is without question one of the world's leading experts on 
nuclear arms control and non-proliferation.
  Frank's many contributions include path breaking work on nuclear 
reactor safety, energy efficiency in automobiles, support of whistle-
blowers, training of a large group of young policy scientists, and his 
current work on the safety of stored spent power-reactor fuel. He is 
the founder of the journal Science and Global Security, the leading 
peer-reviewed journal on technical issues of arms control and 
international security. He is a model to many people about how a 
scientist should contribute to the policy process.
  On the occasion of the award of the George F. Kennan Peace Leadership 
Award, I would like to highlight Frank von Hippel's work with Soviet 
scientists that prepared the way for deep cuts in nuclear arsenals. 
This is only one aspect of Frank's many contributions.
  During the 1980s Frank developed a working relationship with Soviet 
physicist Evgeny Velikhov. At the time, Velikhov was the deputy 
director of the I. V. Kurchatov Institute of Atomic Energy in Moscow, 
and he became the science advisor to Soviet President Mikhail 
Gorbachev. Through this relationship, Frank was able to launch a series 
of cooperative efforts between U.S. non-governmental organizations and 
the Soviet Academy of Sciences. These included the installation of 
devices to detect underground nuclear weapons tests, an arms control 
experiment to verify the presence of a nuclear weapon on Soviet 
warship, inspections of Soviet nuclear facilities, programs to 
safeguard and reduce Soviet stockpiles of nuclear weapons materials, 
programs to reduce the nuclear proliferation risk from former Soviet 
nuclear materials stockpiles and from former weapons scientists, and a 
joint U.S.-Soviet project to assess the potential for deep cuts in 
nuclear weapons arsenals. These activities provided a basis for U.S. 
and Soviet reductions in their nuclear arsenals.
  Frank always knows his subject; his work is well reasoned and backed 
up with careful analysis. But his achievements show that he is much 
more than a technical expert. Frank is a great person to work with; 
everyone likes him. His generosity and, especially, his even temper, 
that have helped him forge international cooperation among scientists 
and governments. Frank is the first person I call when I have questions 
on nuclear weapons and arms control or any number of other subjects. He 
richly deserves this great honor.

                          ____________________