Participants in 18th Global Dialogue on Nuclear Security Priorities Sound the Alarm, But Highlight Pathways to Progress

More than 30 nuclear security leaders from across 22 countries and 6 continents gathered in Ethiopia in July to develop stronger International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) nuclear security recommendations and plans to support the Amended Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material (CPPNM).

Convened by NTI, this was the 18th meeting of the Global Dialogue on Nuclear Security Priorities, an initiative initiated by NTI in 2012 to facilitate international discussions between government, industry, and international and civil society organizations on sustaining and strengthening security for nuclear materials and facilities worldwide.

The meeting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia from July 8–11, 2025, was the first Global Dialogue held in Africa—an acknowledgment of the continent’s burgeoning interest in nuclear energy, recent strides in nuclear security implementation, and the critical importance of including all regional perspectives in efforts to bolster the international nuclear security architecture.

The experts gathered at a time of profound risk. In a first-of-its-kind nuclear security poll, many Global Dialogue participants expressed a surprisingly high level of concern about the likelihood of a nuclear terrorism incident in the next five years and about the decline of nuclear security over the past five years. They also emphasized that nuclear security remains a low to moderate priority relative to other national security issues.

But the Global Dialogue did not just focus on challenges. It featured sessions designed to exchange lessons learned, share regional experiences, and shape practical strategies for strengthening nuclear security. Participants focused on:

• How to mitigate emerging risks, including the rapid development of artificial intelligence and autonomous systems, cyber vulnerabilities, insider risks, the security of nuclear facilities in armed conflict, and geopolitical instability, all of which are placing new strains on existing nuclear security frameworks

• Developing recommendations for the ongoing revision of the IAEA’s Nuclear Security Recommendations on Physical Protection of Nuclear Material and Nuclear Facilities (INFCIRC/225/Revision 5) (NSS No. 13), the IAEA’s key nuclear security recommendations document

• The urgency of beginning planning for the 2027 Conference of the Parties to the Amendment to the CPPNM, which is the only legally binding international agreement requiring physical protection of nuclear materials and facilities

• The need for a stronger and more inclusive narrative on nuclear security that reflects diverse viewpoints, interests, and priorities. Given stresses on international and multilateral institutions, nuclear security solutions may need to be increasingly regional in nature and nuclear security dialogues held in regional venues.