Non-Proliferation

Response to Sanctions Over Ukraine Would be ‘Serious Development,’ But U.S. Hasn’t Formally Heard Threat Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 3/14/2014 Russia has not directly told the United States that it could halt U.S. arms control inspections in response to sanctions over a disagreement about Ukraine, senior Obama Administration officials said this week. According to Russian […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 3/14/2014 A senior White House official this week continued to defend the Obama Administration’s Fiscal Year 2015 budget request for threat reduction and nonproliferation work, suggesting that the request was adequate to meet President Obama’s nuclear security goals. Requested funding for the National Nuclear Security Administration’s nonproliferation account dipped in FY […]

Jeremy Dillon NS&D Monitor 3/14/2014 A Dutch medical isotope company will not meet its goal of shifting to the use of low enriched uranium for the production of molybdenum-99 by the 2015 target date, according to a meeting held this week with White House officials. Mallinckrodt confirmed to White House officials that it would not […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 3/07/2014 It took nearly two years, but Rose Gottemoeller was finally confirmed as Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security by the Senate this week—but not without a fight. Gottemoeller was confirmed March 6 in a 58-42 vote despite concerns raised by a handful of GOP Senators over […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 2/28/2014 An Obama Administration official said this week that the Senate was informed of a possible issue involving Russian compliance with an arms control treaty in the fall of 2010, several months before the Senate cleared the New START Treaty. Testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee Feb. 25, Brian McKeon, […]

Shine Medical Technologies entered into a three-way memorandum of understanding (MOU) with PT Industri Nuklir Indonesia (INUKI) and IPTN North America, Inc. (INA) last week that could potentially include an investment into Shine’s planned molybdenum-99 (moly-99) production facility. Shine has already submitted a construction authorization application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and if it receives […]

The Department of Energy has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Royal Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, continuing Norway’s support of the National Nuclear Security Administration’s nonproliferation program. The MOU was signed by Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz and Norway’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Børge Brende, extending a relationship that dates to 2005. Norway and […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 2/07/2014 Three senior House Republicans late this week urged President Obama to take action against Russia for violating the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty. The New York Times reported Jan. 30 that acting Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Rose Gottemoeller had met with NATO allies in January […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 2/07/2014 A pair of key State Department arms control nominees were cleared by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee this week. Rose Gottemoeller, the President’s nominee to be Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security, and Frank Rose, Obama’s pick to be Assistant Secretary of State for Verification and […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 2/07/2014 In separate venues this week, a pair of senior American diplomats called for movement in the Conference on Disarmament on a Fissile Material Cutoff Treaty, but the Geneva negotiating body appears to be as stymied as ever in its push to begin the talks. In a speech this week, Israel’s […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 6/13/2014 The security of high-risk industrial radiological sources is lacking despite often times meeting Nuclear Regulatory Commission requirements, the Government Accountability Office said in a report released this week, drawing concern from the top Democrat on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. In a June 12 audit report, the […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 6/13/2014 Calling Russia’s actions to test a land-based cruise missile a “material breach” of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, the top Republican on the House Armed Services Strategic Forces Subcommittee pressed President Obama this week to take action against Russia. Speaking at the Capitol Hill Club June 11, Rep. Mike Rogers […]

NS&D Monitor 1/31/2014 In a stern warning to Congress against additional Iran sanctions, President Obama drew on the Administration’s arms control and nuclear security record to bolster the case for American diplomacy with Iran in his State of the Union address this week. “American diplomacy has rallied more than fifty countries to prevent nuclear materials […]

Kenneth Fletcher NS&D Monitor 1/31/2014 With negotiations ongoing on a number of civil nuclear agreements, lawmakers pressed Obama Administration officials this week on the need for more Congressional oversight of such deals. While the agreements, known as ‘123 agreements,’ currently must only sit before Congress for 90 legislative days before entering into force, a bill […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 1/31/2014 Russia has begun testing a new cruise missile that violates the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, according to a news report this week. The New York Times reported Jan. 30 that acting Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Rose Gottemoeller had met with NATO allies earlier […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 1/31/2014 The United States has finally secured an agreement with Japan for Tokyo to transfer 730 pounds of plutonium to the U.S., according to Japanese news reports. An announcement of the agreement is expected to come during the Nuclear Security Summit scheduled for March in the Netherlands, and Obama Administration officials […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 1/24/2014 The United States does not have the monitoring and verification capabilities necessary to keep track of the potential spread of nuclear weapons know-how growing around the world, according to a recent report by the Defense Science Board that calls for more cooperation among existing nuclear powers to address capabilities gaps. […]

NS&D Monitor 1/24/2014 IN THE WHITE HOUSE The White House officially announced this week that President Obama would attend the third Nuclear Security Summit in the Netherlands in March. The announcement comes as no surprise considering it was Obama that established the Nuclear Security Summit process in 2010 when the United States hosted the inaugural […]

Senate Committee Passes Extension for South Korea Deal Kenneth Fletcher NS&D Monitor 1/17/2014 The Obama Administration is working on negotiations for a host of civil nuclear cooperation agreements in 2014, but will likely continue to face questions from lawmakers on provisions regarding enrichment and reprocessing in certain deals. Some lawmakers and nonproliferation advocates have pushed […]

Kenneth Fletcher NS&D Monitor 1/17/2014 Concerns by two Republican lawmakers regarding future nuclear weapons reductions led the Senate Foreign Relations Committee this week to hold off on voting on the nominations of Rose Gottemoeller to be Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security and Frank Rose to be Assistant Secretary of State […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 1/10/2014 Countries around the world are making progress in securing nuclear material within their borders, according to a report released this week by the Nuclear Threat Initiative that continued to push for a global system governing all nuclear materials. The report, released in advance of the third Nuclear Security Summit in […]

Kenneth Fletcher WC Monitor 3/28/2014 Plans to send a significant amount of plutonium and highly enriched uranium from Japan to the United States are raising questions for officials near the material’s likely home at the Savannah River Site. Citing concerns over plutonium already in the state, South Carolina this month filed suit against the Obama […]

The House panel’s draft spending bill would also oppose efforts by the Department to put the Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication facility into “cold standby” in FY’15. The legislation specifies that MOX funding “may be made available only for construction and program support activities for such Project,” according to the bill language. It also provides a […]

Kenneth Fletcher NS&D Monitor 6/6/2014 The Department of Energy would be required to continue construction of the Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility until it completes an assessment of alternatives under the Senate Armed Services Committee’s version of the Fiscal Year 2015 National Defense Authorization Act, details of which were released this week. DOE currently plans […]

The Department of Energy would be required to continue construction of the Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility until it completes an assessment of alternatives in language in the Senate Armed Services Committe’s release of the Fiscal Year 2015 National Defense Authorization Act. DOE currently plans to put the plant into “cold standby” in FY’15 and […]

House Approves Version This Week With No Funding Increase for Project Kenneth Fletcher NS&D Monitor 5/23/2014  The beleaguered Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility project would see a significant boost in authorized funding for Fiscal Year 2015 under the Senate version of the FY15 National Defense Authorization Act, reported out of the Senate Armed Services Committee […]

Kenneth Fletcher NS&D Monitor 5/30/2014 The Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility project has been "largely unsuccessful" in controlling project cost and schedule, according to a DOE Inspector General’s Office report released this week that includes several recommendations for a path forward. Rising costs prompted DOE earlier this year to announce plans to put the project […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 5/30/2014 Nonproliferation groups have harshly criticized the Obama Administration’s Fiscal Year 2015 request for nonproliferation work, and two groups are now directly appealing to the White House to increase the funding. The Council for a Livable World and the Fissile Material Working Group have initiated an online petition calling for the […]

Ten Republican Senators are asking the State Department’s Inspector General to investigate how much then-Assistant Secretary of State for Arms Control, Verification, and Compliance Rose Gottemoeller was aware of possible Russian violations of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty during the ratification process of the New START Treaty. In a May 23 letter, the Senators asked […]

Nonproliferation groups have harshly criticized the Obama Administration’s Fiscal Year 2015 request for nonproliferation work, and two groups are now directly appealing to the White House to increase the funding. The Council for a Livable World and the Fissile Material Working Group have initiated an online petition calling for the White House to restore funding […]