Dr. Brent Park spoke at an October 29 virtual event on strengthening global safeguards and security in an advanced nuclear age.
National Nuclear Security Administration
November 24, 2020
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NNSA has a key role in ensuring that tomorrow’s advanced nuclear technologies integrate safeguards and security to ensure they don’t present future risks to the world, according to Dr. Brent Park, the agency’s nonproliferation leader. He offered that perspective in an October 29 virtual event, Strengthening Global Safeguards and Security in an Advanced Nuclear Age , which was co-hosted by the Atlantic Council and Third Way.
“Nonproliferation is a part the nuclear system of nuclear technologies and nuclear reactors,” said Dr. Park, NNSA’s Deputy Administrator for Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation (DNN), “It’s not separable.…There’s a direct link between how we protect it and how we share the technologies."
We have done this probably longer than any other country, so we have a lot to share with other countries who are interested in pursuing nuclear technologies for peaceful purposes.
The event highlighted the future global market for advanced nuclear technologies, and the importance of integrating safeguards and security to ensure that U.S. companies are ready to compete. Dr. Park stressed how DNN’s decades of experience in nuclear security, reactor conversion, international safeguards, and export controls can help the U.S. advanced reactor industry succeed.
“We have done this probably longer than any other country, so we have a lot to share with other countries who are interested in pursuing nuclear technologies for peaceful purposes,” said Dr. Park.
Dr. Park emphasized that NNSA wants and needs U.S. industry to succeed in bringing new U.S. nuclear technologies to global markets, and added that this success will be key to establishing relationships and cooperation that benefit U.S. national security. He also observed that NNSA’s extensive, long-term cooperation with over 100 countries and the International Atomic Energy Agency in nuclear security and safeguards can greatly benefit U.S. companies as they seek to engage with global export markets.
Dr. Park emphasized that close NNSA-industry cooperation in the development of U.S. advanced reactor technologies benefits government and industry, and that NNSA looks forward to deepening that cooperation moving forward.
As part of that work, NNSA is engaging with U.S. advanced reactor companies early in their design processes to incorporate key safeguards, security, and proliferation concepts. Such an approach can both promote U.S. nonproliferation goals and support the U.S. advanced reactor community by enhancing the appeal of their designs to potential customers, since integrated designs can reduce the costs of safeguards and security over the long term.
NNSA brings decades of safeguards, security, and export control experience to these relationships, including the hosting of 50 safeguards engagements with international partners in 2020 alone; the delivery of nuclear export control training to over 500 U.S. industry, government, and scientific personnel since 2018; and more than 20 years of experience with dozens of countries preventing the theft and sabotage of nuclear material.
In addition to Dr. Park’s remarks, the event featured an international advanced nuclear map and global market analysis, as well as a panel discussion on the critical role U.S. clean energy innovation can play in reducing carbon emissions in the United States.