REPORT OUTLINES PROGRESS, CHALLENGES FOR NUCLEAR SECURITY SUMMITS

The Nuclear Security Summits initiated by President Obama in 2010 have succeeded in rallying international support toward efforts to secure nuclear materials around the world, but the efforts lack coordination, according to a report released yesterday by several groups. While noting that significant progress has been made as a result of the Nuclear Security Summit process, the “progress report” on the summits suggests that the current structure of the events is inadequate. The report was issued by the Arms Control Association and the Partnership for Global Security. “Although all 53 participating countries have taken steps since the 2012 summit to strengthen nuclear security, the current system lacks universal reporting requirements and standards, making it difficult to assess the overall progress of the summit process,” Arms Control Association nonproliferation analyst Kelsey Davenport said in a statement. The report calls on countries to agree to a standard reporting framework at the 2014 Nuclear Security Summit in The Netherlands. “The Nuclear Security Summit process brought high-level attention to the threat posed by nuclear terrorism,” Partnership for Global Security senior budget and policy analyst Michelle Cann said in a statement. “However, the current patchwork of voluntary initiatives and recommendations are not sufficient to sustain progress and guard against nuclear terrorism in the years ahead. We urge all states to work toward building a stronger and more effective international nuclear security governance system.”