Nuclear terrorism by states and non-state actors: Global responses to threats to military and human security in international law

Abstract

Despite a wide range of progressive developments over the past half-century, nuclear threats remain one of the greatest challenges to military and human security. Over time the focus has expanded from that of activities to counter horizontal non-proliferation, which is preventing non-nuclear weapon states from developing weapons, and vertical proliferation, the stockpiling of nuclear weapons within existing nuclear weapon states themselves, to include non-state actors and terrorist groups from acquiring nuclear capacity. Whilst the Treaty on Nuclear Non-Proliferation 1968 remains the cornerstone of nuclear regulation, today, questions remain regarding its interpretation and enforcement. This uncertainty comes at a time when terrorist groups pose a credible threat to detonate a nuclear device or to release a so-called 'dirty bomb'. Such concerns have compounded the global challenge regarding nuclear security leading to a number of developments at national, regional and international levels. The article offers a comprehensive account of the various initiatives taken at the international level to cope with the threat of nuclear terrorism. It explores the various legal and cooperative responses to the threat to military and human security regarding State Parties as well as non-state actors and terrorist networks, noting some of the deficiencies in current approaches and highlighting areas for legal development and enforcement. The article concludes with an argument that nuclear nonproliferation forms a special domain under international law, drawing relevant conclusions and offering recommendations calling for greater legally binding commitments at national, regional and global levels to adequately address the scale of the nuclear challenge.