Addressing Nuclear Black Markets

IPI launched the new strategic dossier by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) entitled “Nuclear Black Markets: Pakistan, A.Q. Khan and the Rise of Proliferation Networks.”

The arrest and public confession of Pakistani nuclear weapons scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan in 2004 revealed the existence of a global proliferation network which had, over almost two decades, provided nuclear technology, expertise, and designs to Iran, North Korea, Libya and possibly other countries. The network spanned three continents and eluded both national and international systems of export controls that had been designed to prevent illicit trade. The discovery of the Khan network has led to a series of national and international efforts aimed at adapting the non-proliferation regime to the challenge of nuclear black markets, such as adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 1540.

The IISS report provides a comprehensive assessment of the Pakistani nuclear program from which the Khan network emerged, the network’s onward proliferation activities, and the illicit trade in fissile materials. In addition, the report provides an overview of the clandestine nuclear procurement activities of other states, along with the efforts made both by Pakistan and the international community to prevent the recurrence of further proliferation networks and to secure nuclear technology. This policy forum introduced the report’s findings and discussed their implications for the non-proliferation regime and the United Nations.

Our panelists included Michael Fitzpatrick, Senior Fellow for Non-Proliferation at the International Institute for Strategic Studies and Brigadier General Feroz Khan, Visiting Professor at the Department of National Security Affairs of the Naval Postgraduate School.

This event was chaired by IPI President Terje Rød-Larsen.