Advancing Integrated SafeguardsU.S. Perspective

The Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT), which enjoys worldwide support and has played a central role in limiting the spread of nuclear weapons, is now facing unprecedented challenges. These include the discovery of Iraq’s clandestine nuclear weapons program more than a decade ago and, more recently, developments in the DPRK and Iran and revelations about A.Q. Khan’s nuclear black market. The international community and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have made considerable progress in strengthening international nuclear safeguards, but we must do more to address these new challenges.