| WASHINGTON
- October 24 - In light of the Sept. 11
attacks, nuclear power plants and associated infrastructure present
a significant terrorism vulnerability in the United States and
abroad; directly attacking reactors with aircraft or truck bombs,
sabotaging reactor control systems, or attacking nuclear material
transports could all lead to a dangerous dispersal or theft of
nuclear materials.
According to a new article by Ambassador George Bunn and Fritz
Steinhausler in the October 2001 issue of Arms Control Today, "Many
countries provide some form of physical protection for their
nuclear material, but because there is no international standard or
requirement for physical protection of civilian nuclear material,
countries' physical protections for nuclear facilities vary widely
and are often inadequate."
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has recently
endorsed efforts aimed at fortifying the physical protections of
nuclear facilities, but efforts need to be pursued with greater
urgency, according to Bunn and Steinhausler. There is one
international treaty that provides for protection of civilian
nuclear material, the 1980 Convention on the Physical Protection of
Nuclear Material, but it only applies to the protection from theft
of nuclear material in international transit. The authors argue
that "Adoption of new physical protection standards . is essential,
and the sooner the better. Unfortunately, revising the Convention
on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material will take several
years."
In the interim, they suggest, new principles and standards for
improving physical protection of nuclear facilities worldwide,
which have already been recommended by the IAEA, should be applied
immediately by national governments. In addition, with adequate
funding, "the IAEA can provide guidance, training, advisory
services and technical assistance to help countries improve their
protection practices," write Bunn and Steinhausler, who are with
the Stanford University's Center for International Security and
Cooperation.
The authors are available for comments and analysis on this
vital security issue. Their article, "Guarding Nuclear Reactors and
Material From Terrorists and Thieves," can be accessed on-line at
(http://www.armscontrol.org/act/2001_10/bunnoct01.asp).
For comprehensive news coverage and expert analysis of nuclear
non-proliferation and related issues, visit
(http://www.armscontrol.org)
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