Nuclear smuggling

Guarding the U.S. Against Nuclear Smuggling Threats

The use of a high-yield improvised nuclear bomb in a major U.S. city could cause hundreds of thousands of fatalities, and the use of a dirty bomb would not only cause a large loss of human life, but would be a destabilizing force that could have global social and economic impacts.

These are the words of Anne Harrington, Deputy Administrator for Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation at the U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration, in her testimony given this week to the Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Hearing on the nuclear smuggling threats face by the U.S.

Terrorist groups have sought nuclear and radiological materials and the expertise needed to weaponize them, she says. More than 30 countries currently possess weapons-useable nuclear material stored at hundreds of sites, with the largest inventory in Russia. 

Radiological materials are ubiquitous, with more than 100 countries possessing radiological material stored at thousands of sites. Despite much progress over the past 20 years by international cooperative programs to improve the security of these materials, gaps remain.