On 8 December 2005, Mark Fitzpatrick, IISS Senior Fellow for Non Proliferation, addressed Corporate members on ‘Future Challenges in Non-Proliferation’.
He noted that three years ago, Iraq, Libya and India were among the most worrying countries as far as proliferation is concerned. Since then, they have all been taken off the list – by war, negotiated settlement and redefining the problem. Looking ahead, he outlined other proliferation problems that demand attention. Any chance for success in stemming the proliferation threat from Iran will require international consensus on a firm strategy to change Tehran’s cost-benefit analysis. Meanwhile, having failed to stop North Korea’s nuclear proliferation, US policy there emphasises containment. More broadly, the world is moving too slowly to take the measures required to address non-state proliferation and to secure the nuclear materials in Russia, which contributes to the threat of nuclear terrorism. For biological weapons, the best option is managing the consequences of an attack. An article adapted from Mr. Fitzpatrick’s remarks will be published in the February edition of World Today, published by Chatham House.
