Concerned about the prospect of terrorists getting their hands on nuclear materials, U.S. President Barack Obama in 2010 convened the first Nuclear Security Summit (NSS). In his speech in Prague in 2009, Obama explained that nuclear terrorism was the most immediate and dangerous threat to global security; the NSS was part of a wider effort to secure the world's stockpile of vulnerable nuclear materials.
The NSS has been held every two years since the first conclave. Last week, Obama hosted his second, one that not only took stock of the progress that has been made over the past six years, but also continued its work. It is unclear if the NSS process will survive the Obama presidency: It should. Reports that members of the Islamic State group were observing Belgium nuclear power plants should set off warning bells about the immediacy of this threat. A leader-level summit will keep this issue near the top of international security agendas and help ensure that these efforts garner support and resources.
Typically, leader-level meetings are talk shops, where rhetoric is abundant and action is short. Since the NSS process was launched, however, participants have made over 260 commitments to secure their nuclear materials; about three-quarters of those promises have been implemented. Radioactive materials have been removed, security has been strengthened, "centers of excellence" that teach and spread best practices have been established, and treaties have been signed and implemented. As a result, it is reckoned that highly enriched uranium (HEU) and plutonium from more than 50 facilities in 30 countries — enough material for 130 nuclear weapons — have been secured, and the number of facilities with nuclear materials has declined substantially. All nuclear materials have been removed from their territory of 14 countries and Taiwan.