How to Smuggle Nukes

The Capstone team’s focus was on analyzing the needs and programmatic difficulties of United States Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration (NSDD) outreach in Southeast Asia, a region facing increased risks associated with the smuggling of radioactive and nuclear (R/N) materials. Key factors contributing to these risks include the global spread of potential illicit R/N sources, growing number of potential buyers, challenges in monitoring trafficking, and geopolitical and resource constraints that hinder law enforcement efforts. The team examined multiple states in the region using a framework that assigns comparative scores for programmatic needs and probable program implementation ease to help develop and discuss programmatic priorities. The team’s findings highlighted the significant maritime dimension to Southeast Asian smuggling, complicating law enforcement action, and the varying effects of corruption on NSDD's ability to cooperate with partner countries, depending on the types and levels of system corruption. The recommendations for NSDD outreach in Southeast Asia included prioritizing outreach to countries with less challenging program implementation but still needed, avoiding overburdening existing missions, focusing on capacity and organizational structure, and pursuing multi-faceted outreach initiatives. These recommendations aimed to help NSDD feasibly, efficiently, and effectively build its presence in Southeast Asia, contributing to the reduction of R/N smuggling risks in the region.