Presentation by the International Panel on Fissile Materials (presentation slides, audio recording)

Hosted by the Permanent Mission of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to the UN and the International Panel on Fissile Materials (IPFM)

Achieving nuclear disarmament, stopping nuclear proliferation, and preventing nuclear terrorism are among the most critical challenges facing the world today. A major new book, "Unmaking the Bomb" proposes a fresh approach to reaching these long-held goals.

Rather than considering them as separate issues, the authors--physicists and experts on nuclear security from Princeton University's Program on Science and Global Security and the International Panel on Fissile Materials--argue that all three of these goals can be understood and realized together if we focus on the production, stockpiling, and disposal of plutonium and highly enriched uranium--the fissile materials that are the key ingredients used to make nuclear weapons.

To mark the release of this new book, two of the authors will explain the scale and nature of the fissile materials challenge and outline proposed policies aimed at reducing and eventually ending the dangers these materials pose. These include an end to the production of highly enriched uranium and plutonium for weapons, an end to their use as military and civilian reactor fuels, and the verified elimination of all national stockpiles.

Speakers:

Frank von Hippel, Princeton University Program on Science and Global Security, and co-chair International Panel on Fissile Materials

Zia Mian, Princeton University Program on Science and Global Security, and co-deputy-chair International Panel on Fissile Materials

Opening Remarks
Amb. Henk Cor van der Kwast
Permanent Representative of the Netherlands to the Conference on Disarmament