Preventing Nuclear Terrorism: Agenda for the President's Opening Weeks in Office
Newsletter Article, Belfer Center Newsletter, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School
Spring 2009
Authors: Matthew Bunn, Associate Professor of Public Policy; Co-Principal Investigator, Project on Managing the Atom; Co-Principal Investigator, Energy Research, Development, Demonstration, and Deployment (ERD3) Policy Project, Andrew Newman, Research Associate, Project on Managing the Atom
Belfer Center Programs or Projects: International Security; Managing the Atom; Science, Technology, and Public Policy
This article is adapted from "Preventing Nuclear Terrorism: An Agenda for the Next President" (November 2008) by Matthew Bunn and Andrew Newman. For full text, see: http://belfercenter.ksg.harvard.edu/publication/18673.
President Barack Obama took office in a world where the danger that terrorists could get and use a nuclear bomb remains very real. Al-Qaeda is reconstituting its ability to carry out complex operations. Despite remarkable progress in improving nuclear security in Russia, serious risks of nuclear theft remain in that country. Pakistan’s heavily-guarded stockpile faces severe threats from both al-Qaeda attackers and from insiders linked to violent Islamic extremists. Some 130 research reactors in 30 countries continue to use highly enriched uranium (HEU) as their fuel—in some cases, with no more security than a night watchman and a chain-link fence.
Steps for the Opening Weeks
President Obama should take several key steps in the opening weeks of his administration:
- Appoint a full-time senior official for efforts to prevent nuclear terrorism.
- Issue a directive making clear that preventing nuclear terrorism will be a top priority for U.S. national security policy and diplomacy.
- Invite leaders to a summit on preventing nuclear terrorism. This should be an early initiative, to communicate the priority he places on this effort. (Obama has pledged to do this.)
With a sensible strategy, adequate resources, and sustained leadership, the risk of nuclear terrorism can be dramatically reduced during the next president’s first term.
- Establish interagency “tiger teams” to develop approaches to overcoming the obstacles to progress for each major country with stockpiles to secure—and for developing global nuclear security standards.
- Seek an appropriation in the range of $500 million, to be available until expended, that can be spent flexibly on high-priority actions to reduce the risk of nuclear theft.Congress will have to pass a new budget for the remainder of FY 2009 by March 6, when the current continuing resolution expires, and the new president should seek to include this funding in that new budget.
- The fundamental key to success will be convincing political leaders and nuclear managers around the world that nuclear terrorism is a real and urgent threat to their countries’ security, worthy of a substantial investment of their time and money – something many of them do not believe today.
With a sensible strategy, adequate resources, and sustained leadership, the risk of nuclear terrorism can be dramatically reduced during the new president’s first term.
For more information about this publication please contact the Belfer Center Communications Office at 617-495-9858.
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