Empowering Congress on Nuclear Security: Blueprints for a New Generation July 2018
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An Arms Control Association and Partnership for a Secure America Report Empowering Congress on Nuclear Security: Blueprints for a New Generation July 2018 Jack Brosnan, Andrew Semmel, Nathan Sermonis, and Kingston Reif A Forum on the Arms Trade Report An Arms Control Association and Partnership for a Secure America Report Empowering Congress on Nuclear Security: Blueprints for a New Generation July 2018 Jack Brosnan, Andrew Semmel, Nathan Sermonis, and Kingston Reif About the Authors Jack Brosnan is a Program Associate at Partnership for a Secure America. His focus includes non-proliferation, nuclear security, and the nexus of transnational smuggling and terrorism. Prior to joining PSA Jack spent several years at MIX working to improve delivery of financial services in developing countries. He has also worked as a researcher with the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and the School of International Service at American University, focusing on projects in corruption, transnational crime, terrorism, and international security. He holds an M.A. in International Affairs from American University’s School of International Service, and a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Massachusetts Boston. Dr. Andrew Semmel is the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Partnership for a Secure America. Since January 2008, Dr. Semmel has been a private consultant at AKS Consulting. Dr. Semmel joined the Department of State in Spring 2003 as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Nuclear Nonproliferation in the Department’s Bureau of Nonproliferation and continued in that role in the newly formed Bureau of International Security and Nonproliferation. From September 2001 to January 2003, he served as the Executive Director of the U.S.-China Security Review Commission. Prior to that, he served on the personal staff of Senator Richard G. Lugar from 1987 to 2001, where he was the Senator’s senior Legislative Assistant for Foreign Policy. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Michigan and has been a Tenured Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Cincinnati. He has also been an Adjunct Visiting Professor in the Master of Science in Foreign Service Program (MSFS) at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. Nathan Sermonis is the Executive Director at Partnership for a Secure America. He manages organizational strategy, research, and program development in pursuit of PSA’s bipartisan mission. Establishing new core initiatives in Congress, Nathan has led the expansion of PSA’s educational impact among Capitol Hill’s foreign policy and national security community. Previously, he served as a policy adviser on Capitol Hill, Congressional campaign aide, and political journalist. Nathan holds a B.S. in energy studies from Cornell University. Kingston Reif is the Director for Disarmament and Threat Reduction Policy at the Arms Control Association, where his work focuses on nuclear disarmament, preventing nuclear terrorism, missile defense, and the defense budget. Reif is an expert on the legislative process and closely monitors Congressional action on these issues. Reif holds a MSc. in International Relations from the London School of Economics and Political Science, a M.Litt. in International Security Studies from the University of St. Andrews, and a B.A. in International Relations from Brown University. Acknowledgements The authors would like to thank Partnership for a Secure America’s senior advisor Jenifer Mackby for her assistance in drafting and reviewing this report. The authors would also like to thank the Arms Control Association’s Executive Director Daryl G. Kimball, Kelsey Davenport, director for nonproliferation policy, and Alicia Sanders- Zakre, policy and programs research assistant, for their assistance in reviewing this report. Special thanks to Allen Harris for the report’s layout and design. Leland Cogliani, Lee Hamilton, William Perry, Tom Pickering, Bud McFarlane, and Fran Townsend provided thoughtful feedback on this report. The authors would also like to thank Elizabeth Talerman and Liza Ezbiansky from Nucleus Strategy for their assistance on creating the congressional surveys used for this report. Partnership for a Secure America and the Arms Control Association also wish to thank the group of over 100 congressional staff who provided their input through in-person interviews, responses to our digital survey, and participation in our focus group. This report was made possible by a grant from the John D. and Catherine T. McArthur Foundation. The authors are responsible for the content of the report, and the statements made and views expressed do not necessarily represent the views of Partnership for a Secure America’s Advisory Board or the Arms Control Association’s Board of Directors. Cover Photo Highly enriched uranium awaiting secure transportation by rail on September 26, 2010. (Photo credit: National Nuclear Security Administration) © Arms Control Association, July 2018 TABLE OF CONTENTS 2 Executive Summary 4 The Nuclear Security Threat Environment 7 The Role of Congress on Nuclear Security 9 Notable Examples of Congressional Leadership on Nuclear Security 14 Effective Strategies for Engaging Congress 24 Recommended Action Items for Congress 28 Appendix A: Methodology for Congressional Study of Nuclear Security Attitudes 30 Appendix B: Full Interview Questionnaire and Digital Survey 34 Endnotes Empowering Congress on Nuclear Security: Blueprints for a New Generation 1 Executive Summary he global nuclear security enterprise is at a critical crossroads. While the worldwide use of nuclear and radioactive materials has grown, the issue of nuclear security, Tbroadly defined by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as “security of nuclear materials and the facilities that house them,” has all but faded from the U.S. national conversation. As these materials become more widespread, they will be vulnerable to criminal and terrorist organizations without sufficient security efforts. Despite this risk nuclear security is not a high have expressed interest in developing them. The priority on Capitol Hill, and leadership is largely ceded use of emerging technologies with potential nuclear to the executive branch where competing interests proliferation and nuclear security implications poses increasingly sideline this critical issue. The history of new challenges. bipartisan congressional engagement on nuclear security The task of plugging the gaps and reducing material dramatically contrasts with today’s level of legislative stockpiles is likely to be more challenging now that interest. Attention has sharply declined since the end the summit process, the last gathering of which took of the Nuclear Security Summit process in 2016 and place in March 2016, and the high-level political the exodus of congressional members and staff who attention it brought to this issue has come to an end. formed their worldviews through the Cold War. In addition, Russia, which possesses the largest cache To better understand past and present congressional of nuclear weapons usable material on the planet, engagement on nuclear security, Partnership for boycotted the 2016 Summit and ended most nuclear a Secure America (PSA) and the Arms Control security cooperation with the United States in 2014. Association (ACA) jointly undertook a first-ever study Cooperation with other countries that pose significant of current congressional staff attitudes on the issue nuclear security risks remains limited. and explored case studies of congressional leadership Meanwhile, U.S. budgets for nuclear security in this field. continue to decline while funding to sustain and This report is divided into five sections. The upgrade U.S. nuclear weapons trends upward. In first section assesses the current nuclear security addition, Congress has restricted nuclear security threat environment and summarizes the Trump cooperation with Russia and taken initial steps administration’s actions on nuclear security to date. to constrain cooperation with China. The Trump The second section outlines the role of Congress on administration’s limited interest in nuclear security nuclear security. The third section analyzes three has also introduced uncertainty about sustaining U.S. examples of past and current congressional leadership leadership on the issue. on nuclear security. The fourth section presents the Over the years, bipartisan congressional support for results of our joint study of congressional attitudes, nuclear security programs has been a critical feature providing ten effective strategies for engaging of U.S. leadership in continuously improving global Congress on nuclear security. And the fifth section nuclear security. There is a long legacy of bipartisan provides ten recommendations on action items congressional action to reduce nuclear risks, such for Congress. as Senators Sam Nunn (D-Ga.) and Richard Lugar The Nuclear Security Summit process and U.S. (R-Ind.) in 1991 establishing U.S.-led programs to nuclear security and threat reduction programs assist the countries of the former Soviet Union have played a vital role in reducing the risk of in securing and eliminating nuclear weapons nuclear terrorism. However, significant gaps remain, and materials. particularly with respect to the security of highly However, while the nuclear security challenges enriched uranium (HEU) and plutonium stockpiles. facing the nation have only grown more complex, About 50 new nuclear power plants are under in recent years congressional engagement