The New Loose Nukes
LOS
ANGELES – Nobody would dispute the danger inherent in possessing nuclear
assets. But that danger becomes far more acute in a combat zone, where
nuclear materials and weapons are at risk of theft, and reactors can
become bombing targets. These risks – most apparent in today’s
chaos-ridden Middle East – raise troubling questions about the security
of nuclear assets in volatile countries everywhere.
Two
recent events demonstrate what is at stake. On July 9, the militant
group now known as the Islamic State captured 40 kilograms (88 pounds)
of uranium compounds at Mosul University in Iraq. The captured uranium
was not weapons-grade; international inspectors removed all sensitive
material from Iraq following the 1991 Gulf War (which is why it was
absent when the United States invaded in 2003). But what international
response, if any, would have been initiated if the cache had been highly
enriched?
On the same day, Hamas launched three powerful Iranian-designed rockets from Gaza at Israel’s Dimona reactor.
Luckily, two missed the target, and Israel managed to intercept the
third. But the episode represented a serious escalation of hostilities
and served as an important reminder of the vulnerability of nuclear
reactors in warzones.
Read more at https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/bennett-ramberg-highlights-the-vulnerability-of-nuclear-assets-in-volatile-countries#fSgUMVlCtRbsDQ6U.99
https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/bennett-ramberg-highlights-the-vulnerability-of-nuclear-assets-in-volatile-countries
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