UNODC Holds Workshop on the 2005 Amendment to the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material and the International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism

Largely as a result of the adoption of five international legal instruments relevant to fighting nuclear terrorism in the last decade, UNODC has stepped up its efforts to assist Member States with the criminal justice aspects of the protection against nuclear terrorism. For example, between 16 and 18 October 2013, senior officials from Comoros, Djibouti, Kenya, Madagascar, Mozambique, Rwanda, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania and Uganda gathered at the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Regional Office in Nairobi, Kenya, to discuss the importance of the ratification and legislative implementation of two key international legal instruments in the fight against nuclear terrorism: the Amendment to the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material (CPPNM) and the International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism (ICSANT). Both instruments, adopted in 2005, complement each other in several ways and fill existing gaps in the protection against nuclear terrorism from a criminal justice perspective.

The Workshop, which was made possible as a result of generous funding from the Government of the United Kingdom, was part of UNODC's ongoing efforts to promote the entry into force of the Amendment to the CPPNM and the increase in ratifications and implementation of the ICSANT.

In addition to UNODC experts who presented both legal instruments in detail and briefed delegates on the benefits and challenges associated with adhering to and implementing them, representatives from the African Union, Argentina's Nuclear Regulatory Authority, the Institute for Security Studies, the International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Kingdom and the 1540 Committee contributed to the event and shared their expertise. Participating countries had an opportunity to present their relevant domestic legislation and discuss it among themselves and with the experts.

Last June, UNODC also conducted a similar workshop in which senior officials from Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Cote d'Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Senegal and Togo gathered at UNODC's Regional Office in Dakar, Senegal to focus on the above-mentioned international legal instruments. More information on the event can be found at http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/terrorism/latest-news/international_legal_framework_against_nuclear_terrorism_africa.html.

For further information on the ratification and the full implementation of the international legal instruments dealing with nuclear terrorism please email unodc-cbrn@un.org.