Nuclear Security News and Member Updates Roundup, July 2022

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

We continue to reflect on the legacy of Stimson co-founder Michael Krepon, a leader in the nuclear security and non-proliferation field who passed away last month; he will be missed by many in this community.   His constant encouragement to resist cynicism and to remain creative and patient in tackling the challenges of the day is particularly apt as we continue to carry his legacy forward. 

Tensions remain high at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant, currently occupied by Russian forces and, according to recent news reports, being used as a military base to launch attacks into the surrounding area. It is hard to imagine anything more antithetical to the principles of nuclear security and it will take real creativity to re-imagine the nuclear security landscape in the wake of these events.    

July also saw the INSF become a formal member of the IAEA’s International Nuclear Security Education Network (INSEN).  With INSEN’s 189 university and research institutional members in 66 countries, I believe that INSEN is a platform for making INSF membership more international, as well as increasing our connections with the academic community, especially in the fields of nuclear engineering and public health.

Hope, Endurance, and Courage, Rick

Director, International Nuclear Security Forum

Join the conversation on Twitter: @INS_Forum

Updates

• The INSF has opened its call for proposals as part of its Nuclear Security Policy Menu series. Find application detail here. 

Nuclear Security News

Impact: The Invasion of Ukraine

• Captured Nuclear Plant Doubles as Launch Pad for Relentless Russian Rocket Attacks: “The missiles were fired from what may be the most impregnable Russian positions along the entire front line: those around the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant just 5km away on the other side of the Dnipro River. The Russian army seized the vast facility — the biggest in Europe, with six 950MW reactors — in the early weeks of its invasion, destroying a training office during the assault despite the obvious risks of damaging the plant and radiation leaks. Since then, Ukrainian officials say, the Russians have stationed 500 troops and heavy weapons within the perimeter — in breach of international energy conventions — and are using the reactor blocks to protect against retaliatory fire.”
• Ukrainian Nuclear Power Plant Official Abducted by Russian Occupiers: “The head of the environmental protection service of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, Ihor Khavshnin, has been abducted by Russian soldiers in south-eastern Ukraine, according to officials of the Ukrainian nuclear power plant company, Energoatom.”
• SBU Collects Evidence of Nuclear Terrorism in Chernobyl Exclusion Zone: “”The Security Service of Ukraine has gathered what the agency says is ‘indisputable evidence’ that the Russian military units, which had once seized the facilities of the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant and held them under control from February 24 to March 31, had in fact committed an act of nuclear terrorism.”

International Architecture

• IAEA Initiative Sets Ambitious Goals to Support the Safe and Secure Deployment of SMRs: “Enhanced harmonization of regulatory activities and the standardization of industrial approaches are expected as the outcome of a new IAEA initiative, which kicked off in June. Senior nuclear regulators and industry leaders met for the first time under the IAEA’s Nuclear Harmonization and Standardization Initiative (NHSI) on 23-24 June to discuss roadmaps to accelerate the safe and secure deployment of advanced nuclear reactors, with a particular focus on small modular reactors (SMRs)… At last week’s kick-off meeting, 125 participants from 33 countries worked in two separate but complementary tracks – one for regulators and the other for technology holders and operators – to develop a joint workplan through 2024.”
• Update 85 – IAEA Director General Statement on Situation in Ukraine: “The IAEA has not been able to visit the ZNPP since before the current military conflict in Ukraine. Russian forces took control of the plant four months ago, but its Ukrainian staff are continuing to operate it. Director General Grossi has repeatedly expressed deep concern about the extremely difficult situation for Ukrainian workers at the plant. The IAEA is continuing to receive remotely transmitted safeguards data from Ukraine’s three other operational nuclear power plants (NPPs). However, the IAEA is still experiencing a partial loss of safeguards data transfer from the Chornobyl NPP.”
• Update 87 – IAEA Director General Statement on Situation in Ukraine: “In recent weeks, there have been a series of reports – both in the media and in the form of official communications received by the IAEA – suggesting that the already difficult and stressful conditions facing Ukrainian staff at the plant have deteriorated further, an issue that the Director General has previously spoken about. In addition, there have been reports in recent days indicating other potential dangers for the plant’s safety. Director General Grossi has repeatedly stressed that the IAEA must be able to send a mission to the Zaporizhzya NPP to conduct essential safety, security and safeguards activities at the facility.” 
• Time to Act: Integrating Safety, Security, and Safeguards in the Design of Innovative Reactors: “”Increased international co-operation, harmonisation of legal and regulatory aspects, and a holistic approach for safety, security and safeguards in the design of small modular reactors (SMRs) were among the key issues discussed at a recent IAEA technical meeting.”
• The International Benchmark for Nuclear Security: the IAEA Nuclear Security Series: “”From physical protection and transport security to nuclear forensics and computer security, the series is the first port of call for States seeking guidance for their national activities. In addition, its 43 publications provide the foundation for the IAEA’s nuclear security programme supporting States”

Weapons, Materials, and Facilities 

• Iran Enriches up to 20% with New Centrifuges at Fortified Site: “Iran announced Sunday that it has begun enriching uranium up to 20% using sophisticated centrifuges at its underground Fordo nuclear plant, state TV reported, an escalation that comes amid a standoff with the West over its tattered atomic deal.”
• Australia Committed to Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Science, IAEA Chief Visit: “Speaking with Mr Grossi on Wednesday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese highlighted Australia’s unwavering commitment to nuclear non-proliferation in the context of AUKUS…After a meeting with Foreign Minister Penny Wong on Monday, Mr Grossi described Australia as a strong supporter of the IAEA’s mission. The two discussed AUKUS and nuclear proliferation challenges in Iran and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.”

Security Culture 

• EDF under Scrutiny for Nuclear Security ‘Shortfalls’: “Nuclear regulators have stepped up their monitoring of French power giant EDF amid concerns about cyber security. The UK’s Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) has put the company under “enhanced attention” after finding “shortfalls” in its cyber security plans, The Telegraph can reveal. French state-owned EDF owns and runs the UK’s nuclear power fleet. It is also building the UK’s first new nuclear power station in a generation, Hinkley Point C in Somerset, with its minority Chinese partner CGN. Cyber security is of heightened concern nationally amid Russia’s war on Ukraine.”

Emerging Threats

• FBI investigation determined Chinese-made Huawei equipment could disrupt US nuclear arsenal communications: “Among the most alarming things the FBI uncovered pertains to Chinese-made Huawei equipment atop cell towers near US military bases in the rural Midwest. According to multiple sources familiar with the matter, the FBI determined the equipment was capable of capturing and disrupting highly restricted Defense Department communications, including those used by US Strategic Command, which oversees the country’s nuclear weapons.”

Material Minimization

• US and Kazakhstan to Minimize Highly Enriched Uranium in Kurchatov: “The United States National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) representatives visited the National Nuclear Center in Kurchatov, a city in the East Kazakhstan Region, and addressed the processes of minimizing highly enriched uranium on July 15, reported the Kazakh Ministry of Energy press service. One of the major accomplishments of the cooperation between the two countries was the conversion of research reactors from highly enriched uranium fuel into low enriched uranium fuel and the utilization of highly enriched uranium in Kazakhstan.”

Member Organization Announcements and Updates

Henry L. Stimson Center 

• Stimson Center co-founder, Michael Krepon, succumbed to illness this past month.  View the statement released on his passing. Honor Michael’s legacy and impact here.  
• INSF Director Rick Cupitt attended the annual INSEN meeting from July 18 – 22 in Vienna, Austria.
• Sneha Nair presented on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Nuclear Security Culture: Insider Threat Assessments at Nuclear Facilities during the 63rd annual meeting of the Institute of Nuclear Materials Management (INMM) from July 24-28, 2022.  

International Institute of Strategic Studies

• Timothy Wright authored an article, “Russia’s new strategic nuclear weapons: a technical analysis and assessment,” examining the implications these new types of nuclear-armed weapons will have on strategic stability between Russia and the US until the end of the decade. Read the piece.
• Wright also authored a new piece on the implications for new ICBMs on regional nuclear deterrence. His article is “India’s test of the Agni-IV.” Read the analysis. 
• William Albuquerque published, “The new NATO Strategic Concept and the end of arms control,” analyzing the increased role of nuclear risk reduction, conflict management, and confidence-building measures in the new document.  Learn more. 
• Wright also put out an analysis, “The credibility and implications of Russia’s missile and nuclear proposal to Belarus,” examining, among other things, the implications for nuclear security. View the article. 

NPSGlobal Foundation

• Irma Arguello went to Mexico City for the Summer Course for Latin American and Caribbean diplomats, organized by the Secretary of External Affairs, OPANAL and the CNS for two sessions, one about Nuclear Security and a second one about Safeguards and the OIEA verification system. 
• Irma Arguello authored a paper about the Amended Convention for the Physical Protection of Nuclear Materials (A/CPPNM), “On the Ground: Reality and Usefulness of the A/CPPNM,” and presented it at the IAEA Conference on Nuclear Law 2022. Read the paper.   

Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI)

• On July 7, NTI hosted Governor Yuzaki of Hiroshima for a discussion about strategies for reducing nuclear risks, including strengthening nuclear security. 
• Three members of NTI’s Nuclear Materials Security team participated in the 63rd annual INMM meeting, which was held virtually from July 24-28, 2022. Learn more.
• On July 25 Jessica Bufford moderated the session: Verifying the Future: Updates from the International Partnership for Nuclear Disarmament Verification, on the work of the International Partnership for Nuclear Disarmament Verification (IPNDV) since the last INMM annual meeting.
• On July 25 at the panel session: Diversity, Equity, Accessibility and Inclusion Special Session, Jack Brosnan presented his paper, “Identifying Structural Obstacles to Advancing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Nuclear Policy Community.”
• Nickolas Roth spoke on the panel: International Atomic Energy Agency Information Circular 225, on July 25. 
• On July 26, Nickolas Roth moderated the panel discussion, Homegrown Violent Extremists: Are They a Threat to Nuclear Facilities?, on the threat that domestic violent extremists pose to nuclear facilities in the United States.
• On July 27, Nickolas Roth moderated the panel discussion, Security Culture/Insider Threat Mitigation. 
• On July 28 Jessica Bufford participated in a panel discussion on efforts to promote the universalization and strengthened implementation of the A/CPPNM following the results of the Review Conference.
• On August 9th, NTI is hosting a panel at the NPT Review Conference in New York titled, “Nuclear Security: A Foundational Element of the Non-Proliferation Regime.” 

Nuclear Transport Solutions (NTS)

• Members of Nuclear Transport Solutions’ security team participated in a US-UK-India government technical exchange on the secure transport of radioactive materials, at the Global Centre for Nuclear Energy Partnership near Delhi. NTS were joined by the Civil Nuclear Constabulary, the UK’s dedicated armed police force for nuclear sites and materials in transit, and by experts from the US National Nuclear Security Administration, national laboratories, and the Indian Department of Atomic Energy. Participants at the event exchanged practices, approaches and lessons learned on a range of issues including national regulatory regimes, threat assessment, security risk management and route selection, and conducted tabletop exercises to test different approaches.. 

University of Melbourne

• Trevor Findlay recently published an article on the AUKUS submarine project and implications for nonproliferation, in Spanish, “Sueños náuticos en Australia: los submarinos nucleares y la no proliferación” (Nautical Dreams in Australia: Nuclear Submarines and Non-Proliferation), Vanguardia Dossier, Numero 84, Julio/Septembre 2022.
• Trevor Findlay’s new book, Transforming Nuclear Safeguards Culture: The IAEA, Iraq, and the Future of Non-proliferation, was launched at the Australian Institute of International Affairs Victoria Branch in Melbourne at a live and virtual event on 21 July. Watch the webinar. 

University of Texas, Austin; Nuclear Proliferation Prevention Project

• Alan J. Kuperman gave an interview on “France can help Albanese fix AUKUS,” with The Interpreter (Australia) on July 14. Learn more.
• Kuperman made a “Public comment on proposed export of highly enriched uranium to Belgium,” on July 5. Read the comment. 
• On ABC TV News (Australia), Kuperman gave an interview on July 18: “Latest Developments on AUKUS Submarines and Nonproliferation.” Watch the interview. 
• On July 5, Kuperman gave an interview on ABC TV News (Australia): “Govt plans to buy nuclear powered submarines under AUKUS.” Watch the recording. 

Vienna Center for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation (VCDNP)

• VCDNP Research Associate Louis Reitmann appeared on an episode of the Disarmament Today podcast by the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) with High Representative Izumi Nakamitsu. Listen to the podcast. 
• The Nuclear Ban Treaty: A Transformational Reframing of the Global Nuclear Order
• On 24 June 2022, the VCDNP and the Toda Peace Institute held a hybrid book launch of “The Nuclear Ban Treaty: A Transformational Reframing of the Global Nuclear Order”. Learn more. 
• In his recent article in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, VCDNP Senior Fellow Dr. Nikolai Sokov argues that the deployment of Russian non-strategic nuclear weapons in Belarus would be a new and potentially dangerous development in the ever-worsening security situation in Europe. Dr. Sokov further notes that this new stage in military standoff between Russia and NATO demonstrates that their relations, for the time being, will be almost exclusively confined to mutual deterrence. Read the article. 
• On the side lines of the TPNW First Meeting of States Parties, VCDNP Research Associate Louis Reitmann interviewed UK theatre writer Chris Thorpe on his newest project: a show focusing on the human story of the struggle for nuclear disarmament. In the interview, Mr. Reitmann asks how the show – titled A Family Business – is meant to evoke an emotional response from viewers and frame a societal discussion on nuclear disarmament. Read the interview. 

Individual Member Updates

• Artem Lazarev at the UNODC’s CBRN Terrorism Prevention Programme shared the following updates:

1. UNODC delivered a national workshop for the Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR) – a State not yet party to ICSANT – on facilitating adherence to, and implementation of, the International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism (ICSANT) on 28 June 2022. The event, which gathered 28 participants from relevant stakeholders, comprised a series of presentations delivered by UNODC experts with a view to making policy and decision-makers of the Lao PDR aware of the key provisions and benefits of becoming party to the Convention as well as the technical and legislative assistance that UNODC can provide with regard to adherence to, and implementation of, ICSANT. A series of bilateral meetings with the national stakeholders, which followed the presentations, offered an opportunity to further elaborate on the importance of ICSANT, UNODC’s available services, as well as roles and responsibilities of the Lao PDR’s stakeholders vis-à-vis the process of adherence to, and subsequent implementation of, the Convention.
2. UNODC launched the eLearning module on ICSANT, which will be available in all UN official languages (Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish), as well as Portuguese. The module, a self-paced learning tool, examines the key provisions of ICSANT and is intended to promote awareness of the need to adhere to this Convention and to incorporate its requirements into national legislation. Upon successful completion, participants receive a personalized certificate. The workshop and the module were made possible thanks to funding by the European Union. Access the module. 

• Daniel Puentes co-authored a policy brief, “Does Boost-Phase Missile Defense Make Us Safer?” Read the brief.  
• Shahneela Tariq presented a conference paper, “’Effects of Artificial Intelligence on Nuclear Security Culture to Mitigate Insider Nuclear Security Threats” at the International Social Sciences Conference 2022 organized by the School of Integrated Social Sciences, University of Lahore. Learn more.

Opportunities

• Sandia National Laboratories is offering a free two-day online workshop on nuclear security designed for members of the nuclear security community in India’s public, private, and academic sectors. This workshop will be two live sessions on October 3-4, from 17:30-20:00 India Standard Time, featuring lectures and case studies on the first day and a tabletop exercise the second day. Interested applicants should send applications to [email protected] by 19 August 2022.
• CRDF Global has an opportunity to join their nuclear security team. View the job descriptions. 
• CSIS is looking to fill an internship vacancy for their Project on Nuclear Issues (PONI). Apply here. 
• The Wisconsin Project is hiring a research associate to support their Risk Report database. Learn more. 
• The Physicists Coalition, based at the non-partisan, nonprofit Arms Control Association in Washington, D.C., is seeking applications for a full-time coordinator for the programmatic, policy, and outreach activities of the Coalition. View the vacancy.
• The Defense Threat Reduction Agency – Cooperative Threat Reduction Directorate (DTRA/CTR) is seeking candidates for an Intergovernmental Personnel Act (IPA) assignment Operational Evaluations Team Lead. For more information, contact Andrew Dorau, 571-616-4927, or [email protected].
• The Truman Center for National Policy seeks a nuclear security expert to serve as the Janne Nolan Nuclear Security Visiting Fellow and execute a multi-year grant, as well as to help shape the public narrative around nuclear weapons and diversity within the field of nuclear security. The fellowship duration will be from approximately September 2022-August 2023. The ideal candidate will:

1. Have at least 5-7 years of experience working on nuclear security issues; 
2. Possess minimum of a masters in related field; 
3. Be a self-starter able to lead the design and execution of program activities; 
4. Have relationships with individuals and organizations outside of Washington who may be potential program partners; and 
5. Possess strong writing and organizational skills. 

• Interested candidates should contact Jon Temin, Truman’s Vice President for Policy & Programs, at [email protected].