NTI at the 2024 International Conference on Nuclear Security

The Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) will be on the ground at the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) International Conference on Nuclear Security (ICONS): Shaping the Future, taking place in Vienna from May 20–24, 2024. ICONS is a critical opportunity to make progress; it comes at a time when governments need to take urgent action to reverse backsliding on nuclear security, and it will likely be the last ministerial-level meeting devoted entirely to nuclear security for several years.

NTI will launch a new paper, Nuclear Facilities in Times of Crisis, during a side event on Thursday, May 23, and members of NTI’s Nuclear Materials Security program will deliver research presentations throughout the week (details below). NTI will also have an official booth in the Building C rotunda, where participants can find NTI’s innovative research products and engage on pressing nuclear security topics.

Side Event: Nuclear Security in Times of Crisis

Thursday, May 23 | 12:45-1:45pm

Conference Room M5, Ground Floor, M Building

Today, novel and increasingly intense global conflicts are stressing nuclear facilities around the world in new ways. During this event, NTI will launch a new paper, Nuclear Facilities in Times of Crisis, that evaluates existing strategies for reducing the risk of catastrophe at nuclear facilities during armed conflict and natural disasters, and recommends steps that governments and international institutions should take to prepare facilities for future crises. The event will include a discussion with experts:

• Ross Matzkin-Bridger, Senior Director, Nuclear Materials Security, NTI
• Ruhee Neog, Director, Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies
• Klemen Polak, First Counselor, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Slovenia
• Scott Roecker, Vice President, Nuclear Materials Security, NTI
• Tatsujiro Suzuki, Professor, Nagasaki University

Paper Presentations

NTI experts will present papers throughout the conference program, addressing a range of current topics in nuclear security.

Wednesday, May 22

• 11am-12:30pm
  • Retaining a Diverse Nuclear Workforce for the Future
    • Location: M2, 1st floor, M Building
    • Presenter: Jack Brosnan, Program Officer, Nuclear Materials Security, NTI

Thursday, May 23

• 4-5:30pm
  • Civil Society Contributions to Nuclear Security
    • Location: BR-B, 1st floor, M Building
    • Presenter: Jessica Bufford, Senior Program Officer, Nuclear Materials Security, NTI
  • Mitigating Insider Threats Posed by Domestic Violent Extremists
    • Location: BR-B, 1st floor, M Building
    • Presenter: Nickolas Roth, Senior Director, Nuclear Materials Security, NTI

Friday, May 24

• 1-2:30pm
  • 2023 Nuclear Security Index: Falling Short in a Dangerous World
    • Location: M2, 1st floor, M Building
    • Presenter: Nickolas Roth, Senior Director, Nuclear Materials Security
  • Redefining the Cooperative Threat Reduction Model for Multilateral Nuclear Security
    • Location: M2, 1st floor, M Building
    • Presenter: Kyle Tucker, Scoville Fellow, Nuclear Materials Security, NTI

NTI Booth

An official NTI booth staffed by experts from the NMS team will be open during conference hours from May 20–May 23 in the Building C rotunda. Conference attendees can visit the booth to learn more about NTI’s work and exchange perspectives on key nuclear security issues.

Data-Driven Recommendations to Restore Progress

Governments are falling short on nuclear security at a dangerous time, according to the 2023 NTI Nuclear Security Index, the premier resource for tracking nuclear and radiological security worldwide. At ICONS and beyond, leaders can use the NTI Index’s data-driven recommendations as individualized roadmaps to demonstrate their commitment to improving domestic and international nuclear security conditions. NTI has consolidated these recommendations into “The Roadmap to Success at the 2024 International Conference on Nuclear Security.”

The NTI Index website is updated periodically to reflect new government efforts to strengthen nuclear security (read the April 2024 update). After ICONS, the NTI team will report on how government action at the conference improved country and area scores.

What to Watch for at ICONS

Today’s nuclear security environment is shaped by an uncertain world, lapsed political attention, and increasingly complex threats. Against this backdrop, ministers face a panoply of important topics to address at ICONS. NTI suggests areas that they should prioritize for a productive conference in a blog post, “Time to Change Course on Nuclear Security.”