Sam Nunn: NTI Launches
Nuclear Materials Security Index
January 14, 2012
The
Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) released a first-of-its-kind, public
baseline assessment of the status of nuclear materials security
conditions in 176 countries. The NTI Nuclear Materials Security Index
underscores that there is no global consensus about what steps matter
most to secure some of the world’s most dangerous materials against
theft and recommends actions to hold countries accountable, increase
transparency and benchmark progress.
Released ahead of the March 2012 Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul, the
NTI Index examines nuclear materials security conditions in 32 countries
with one kilogram or more of weapons-usable nuclear materials, as well
as in 144 additional states that have less than one kilogram of this
material, or none, but could be used as safe havens, staging grounds or
transit points for illicit nuclear activities.
“There is evidence today that the elements of a perfect storm are in
place: an ample supply of weapons-usable nuclear materials—some of it
poorly secured—and the determination of terrorist organizations that
have publicly stated their desire to acquire and use nuclear weapons,”
said NTI Co-Chairman and former U.S. Senator Sam Nunn. “We know that to
get the materials they need, terrorists will go where the material is
most vulnerable. Global nuclear security is only as strong as the
weakest link in the chain.”
The report, NTI Nuclear Materials Security Index: Building a Framework
for Assurance, Accountability and Action, was developed with the
Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), and assesses countries with
weapons-usable nuclear materials across five categories: Quantities and
Sites, Security and Control Measures, Global Norms, Domestic Commitments
and Capacity, and Societal Factors. The 144 states without
weapons-usable materials are assessed across a subset of these
categories.
Country Rankings
Australia ranks number one out of the 32 states with weapons-usable
nuclear materials, with Hungary, the Czech Republic, Switzerland, and
Austria rounding out the top five. The United Kingdom ranks highest
among nuclear-armed states at 10; the United States ranks 13th. Among
countries without weapons-usable nuclear materials, Denmark earns the
top spot. Full rankings are available on the website, www.ntiindex.org.
International Engagement
NTI and EIU drew on the expertise of technical advisors and an
international panel of nuclear security experts from a dozen countries.
The panel members assisted in developing the framework and determining
the factors most important to a robust nuclear materials security
program.
Over
the course of the past year, NTI also offered briefings on the
development of the Index to all 32 countries with weapons-usable nuclear
materials, as well as South Korea, host of the 2012 Nuclear Security
Summit. More than half of those countries reviewed and validated the
data, which was drawn primarily from public and open-source information
gathered by the EIU.
“The Index highlights how countries can take steps to improve the
security of nuclear materials,” said NTI President Joan Rohlfing. “By
offering recommendations for all states, it can be a valuable tool in
helping set priorities. All states can and should do more.”
Recommendations
NTI recommends actions for the global community to take, in parallel
with steps to improve state stewardship.
Build the Foundation for a Global Nuclear Materials Security System
Establish an international
dialogue on priorities for materials security through the Nuclear
Security Summit or a subsequent process
Benchmark progress and hold
states accountable for security
Build appropriate transparency to
increase international confidence by: publishing and providing access to
nuclear materials security regulations; declaring nuclear materials
inventories; and inviting regular peer reviews
Stop increasing stocks of
weapons-usable materials
Improve State
Stewardship of Nuclear Materials
Eliminate weapons-usable nuclear
materials completely in as many states as possible
Strengthen security and control
measures, including physical protection, control and accounting, and
personnel measures at facilities and during transport of nuclear
materials
Bring all civil uranium
enrichment and reprocessing facilities under IAEA safeguards
Better target assistance to
states with urgent needs
Ratify and implement existing
materials security-related treaties.
“The NTI Index
underscores that all countries with weapons-usable nuclear materials
have a responsibility to account for them, to take steps to secure them,
and to provide continued assurances to the rest of the world that those
materials are not at risk for theft or diversion,” said Deepti Choubey,
NTI senior director for nuclear and bio-security and co-leader of the
Index.
2012 Nuclear Security Summit The
March summit provides an opportunity for much-needed international
dialogue on priorities for materials security. “Countries participating
in the Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul can use the Index to stimulate
discussion and define future commitments,” said Page Stoutland, NTI vice
president, nuclear materials security program and Index co-leader.
“This is not about congratulating some countries and chastising others.
We are highlighting the universal responsibility of states to secure the
world’s most dangerous materials,” said Nunn. “As citizens and as
leaders, we need to ask ourselves this question: If we had a
catastrophic nuclear terrorist attack on Moscow or New York, on Tokyo or
Tel Aviv, or on any other city in the world, what steps would we wish we
had taken to prevent it?”
The project was funded by NTI with support from the Peter G. Peterson
Foundation, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and the
Carnegie Corporation of New York.
