
NTI | bio experts address G7 Global Partnership Working Group in Berlin
NTI experts briefed government representatives at a G7 working group meeting in Berlin.
The 2020 NTI Nuclear Security Index finds that progress on protecting nuclear materials against theft and nuclear facilities against acts of sabotage has slowed significantly over the past two years, despite ongoing, major security gaps. An alarming development at a time of growing global disorder and disruption, the decline in the rate of improvement to national regulatory structures and the global nuclear security architecture reverses a trend of substantial improvements between 2012 and 2018.
The decline suggests that without the driving force of the Nuclear Security Summits, which ended in 2016, or similar high-level international events, attention to nuclear security has waned—and it has done so at a time when terrorist capabilities and growing cyber threats contribute to a more complicated and unpredictable environment. At the same time, geopolitical tensions and events such as the COVID-19 pandemic are undermining cooperation and exposing the limits of how countries cope with cross-border threats.
Countries have continued to take steps to strengthen nuclear security regulations and support global norms, but since 2018, the number of countries improving their scores in the NTI Index has declined across all three rankings. The number of countries with worsening scores has increased since 2018 in both the theft ranking for countries without materials and the sabotage ranking. Overall, the average amount that a score improved has declined in all three rankings compared with previous years, showing that even countries that are improving are taking fewer actions.
“Given the challenging backdrop for the sharp decline in progress, it is more important than ever to identify shortfalls and to call for governments, industry, and the international community to once again step up their efforts to prevent a catastrophic attack using stolen nuclear materials or an act of sabotage that could further shake global foundations,” said NTI Co-Chair and CEO Ernest J. Moniz.
The NTI Index—which is produced biennially with the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) and developed with an International Panel of Experts—serves as a critical resource and tool for assessing global nuclear security. For the fifth edition, NTI this year took a fresh approach to the NTI Index to account for past progress on nuclear security and new tools to address risks. Key changes across all three rankings are detailed in the full 2020 report.
In addition, for the first time, NTI this year is releasing a separate Radioactive Source Security Assessment in conjunction with the NTI Index. The first-of-its-kind assessment, which does not rank or score countries, evaluates national policies, commitments, and actions taken in 175 countries and Taiwan to prevent the theft of radioactive sources that could be used to build dirty bombs. The key finding: the international architecture for radiological security is extremely weak, and thousands of radioactive sources remain vulnerable to theft from hospitals, university labs, and industrial sites where they are used for a variety of beneficial purposes.
Although a radiological dirty bomb would not cause mass casualties or injuries, the consequences would be significant: environmental and psychological damage, enormous clean-up costs, and the inability to use the area around the explosion for years.
“These sources often are poorly secured and held in locations open to the public, such as hospitals and universities, making them vulnerable to theft by extremists looking to cause chaos,” says NTI Vice President Laura S.H. Holgate. “The good news is that these sources can be replaced with equally effective alternative technologies.”
On nuclear materials security, the 2020 NTI Index finds that Australia ranks first for the fifth time with the best nuclear security conditions among the 22 countries with weapons-usable nuclear materials and for the third time in the sabotage ranking of 46 countries and Taiwan that have nuclear facilities at which an act of sabotage would could result in a dangerous release of radiation. In the ranking for 153 countries and Taiwan without materials, New Zealand and Sweden tie for first. Most improved among countries with materials in 2020 is Pakistan, which improved its overall score by adopting new on-site physical protection and cybersecurity regulations, improving insider threat protection measures, and more. Pakistan’s score improvement for regulatory measures is the second largest improvement for regulations in the Index since 2012.
The 2020 NTI Index recommends that to reverse the decline in nuclear security improvements, countries must strengthen and sustain political attention on enhancing nuclear security regulations and on building a more effective global nuclear security architecture.
The NTI Index includes nine additional high-level findings and recommendations.
For more information, including data to download in Excel models, go to www.ntiindex.org. The website includes interactive infographics, where visitors can explore maps, compare country results, and determine how to prioritize steps that countries can take to improve their nuclear security conditions.
NTI is a nonpartisan, nonprofit global security organization focused on reducing nuclear and biological threats imperiling humanity. Founded in 2001 by former U.S. Senator Sam Nunn and philanthropist Ted Turner, who continue to serve as co-chairs, NTI is guided by a prestigious international board of directors. Ernest J. Moniz serves as co-chair and chief executive officer; Joan Rohlfing is president and chief operating officer. Visit NTI at www.nti.org.
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NTI experts briefed government representatives at a G7 working group meeting in Berlin.
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