AFF/THREAT REDUCTION: INHERENCY

CURRENT FUNDING LEVELS ARE TOO LOW TO SOLVE FOR RISK OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS USE

AT CURRENT FUNDING LEVELS IT WILL TAKE 60 YEARS TO SECURE NUCLEAR MATERIALS IN RUSSIA — THAT IS TOO LONG

Susan Eisenhower:

One of the keys to the over-arching conclusions of the report is this phrase "greatest unmet challenge."…The word "unmet" is absolutely key - we've spent trillions of dollars on nuclear weapons during the cold war, meeting a perceived threat to American security, and, we are meeting this challenge of potential proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, but not at the level that is commensurate with the threat.

Just to put this into perspective: one of the key Russian scientists that we spoke with when we took our field trip to Russia, mentioned to me that at current funding levels it will take 60 years to secure the nuclear-sensitive sites in Russia.

PROGRAMS TO DEAL WITH LOOSE RUSSIAN WMD COMPONENTS ARE SUCCESSFUL NOT NOT BIG ENOUGH

The country needs a wake-up call about the threat… Non-proliferation programs in the Department of Energy, the Department of Defense, and related agencies have achieved impressive results, thus far. But their limited mandates and funding fall short of what is required to adequately address the threat.

CURRENT PROGRAMS ARE INADEQUATE TO PROTECT RUSSIAN NUCLEAR MATERIALS AND NEED TO BE EXPANDED

Howard Baker, a former Republican senator from Tennessee, Lloyd Cutler served as counsel to Presidents Carter and Clinton, January 11, 2001, The Washington Post SECTION: EDITORIAL; Pg. A27 HEADLINE: An Unacceptable Risk //VT2002acsln

The programs now in place have achieved considerable success. Many efforts to steal weapons-usable material have been intercepted by Russian and international police operations. To the best of our knowledge, no nuclear weapons or nuclear weapons-usable materials have been successfully stolen and exported from Russia.

But the current budget levels are inadequate and the management of the U.S. government's involvement is too diffuse. The existing scope and operation of the programs leave an unacceptable risk of failure and the potential for catastrophic consequences. The new president and the leaders of the 107th Congress face the urgent challenge of devising a stronger response proportionate to the threat.