Conference Addresses Illicit Nuclear Trafficking

Zachary Hosford

In late November, delegates from around the world convened in Edinburgh, Scotland, to address the dangers posed by the trafficking of nuclear and radioactive materials.

Organized by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and hosted by the United Kingdom, the conference entitled “Illicit Nuclear Trafficking: Collective Experience and the Way Forward” aimed to “take stock of global efforts” to impede black market trade as well as to consider measures that might thwart future smuggling attempts.

Included on the agenda was a discussion of the importance and continued development of the IAEA’s Illicit Trafficking Database (ITDB), a collection of recorded incidents of illegal trafficking. The objective of the database is to “facilitate exchange of authoritative information” on events involving nuclear and other radioactive materials and to analyze that information in order to identify any potential patterns.

As of Dec. 7, the ITDB had logged 1,266 incidents, including the Nov. 28 arrest of three men at a border crossing between Hungary and Slovakia who were attempting to sell more than 400 grams of powdered uranium.

In addition to agreeing on a continued focus on information tracking and sharing, the conference participants made several recommendations. First, they pledged to proceed with the development of new technologies for “hard-to-detect fissile materials,” which they agreed to share with states that currently lack more modern technological capabilities. Furthermore, the representatives concurred that they must “increase the sophistication of detection capabilities,” especially to address the long stretches of unguarded borders around the globe. Finally, the delegates agreed to improve intergovernmental communication and inform the general public more effectively on issues related to trafficking.

In all, about 300 delegates from more than 60 countries and 11 international organizations attended the four-day conference, which began Nov. 19. The group plans to convene another meeting in 2010 to assess progress in impeding illicit trafficking.

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