Speakers

Ms. Casey Deering is Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Nuclear Matters. In this role, she is responsible for carrying out the Office of Nuclear Matters' mission “to ensure the continued credibility, safety, security, resiliency, and effectiveness of the U.S. nuclear deterrent to deter adversaries, assure allies and partners, and achieve U.S. objectives if deterrence fails—today and in the future.” The Office of Nuclear Matters is the Department of Defense (DoD) focal point for a wide range of issues related to the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile, nuclear counterterrorism, and nuclear counterproliferation.

Prior to her current role, Ms. Deering served as the Principal Director for Nuclear Matters in the Office of Nuclear Matters. As the Principal Director for Nuclear Matters, Ms. Deering oversaw analytical support and mission integration and advised on all matters relating the modernization and sustainment of the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile, integration with DoD weapons systems, and a range of related safety, security, and countering nuclear threat issues.

Previously, Ms. Deering served as the Director of Secondary Stage Production Modernization at the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (DOE/NNSA), where she was responsible for transforming and modernizing the Nation’s strategic nuclear materials production capabilities for enriched uranium, lithium, depleted uranium, and special materials to support key nuclear security missions.

From 2013 to 2017, Ms. Deering served as the Nuclear Security Attaché at the U.S. Mission to International Organizations in Vienna, Austria. In this capacity, Ms. Deering worked with the International Atomic Energy Agency and Member States to advance nuclear security and counterterrorism goals and served as a senior technical advisor to the U.S. Ambassador.

Prior to Vienna, Ms. Deering was a senior advisor in DOE/NNSA’s Office of Fissile Materials Disposition, which worked to eliminate highly enriched uranium and weapon-grade plutonium that are excess to U.S. and Russian national security needs. In 2008, she joined DOE/NNSA as a spokesperson working with the media to promote the agency’s nonproliferation, emergency operations, and nuclear counterterrorism programs.

Ms. Deering holds a master’s degree in security policy studies from the George Washington University Elliott School of International Affairs and a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Miami University.