Project profile — Strengthening Regional Cooperation for Nuclear Security in the Middle East

This project aims to improve the capabilities of state security and law enforcement agencies in Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon, for planning and carrying out intelligence operations to prevent attempts to traffic nuclear or radiological materials. Project activities include: (1) assessing capabilities, needs and gaps in each country; (2) developing a train-the-trainer cadre of national trainers; (3) facilitating the delivery of nationally-tailored training in each country, delivered by national experts, and with a strong focus on intelligence operations, and how to strike balance between regional information sharing and the protection of sensitive information; (4) organizing and facilitating peer-to-peer workshops to exchange best practices and lessons learned from actual radiological/nuclear trafficking cases; and (5) organizing and delivering a regional tabletop exercise focusing on a scenario involving the trafficking of radioactive material through multiple countries.

The expected outcome for this project is strengthened interagency and regional cooperation and coordination between stakeholder security agencies of Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon, to detect and disrupt attempts to traffic nuclear or radiological materials.

Results achieved as of the end of the project (April 2022) include: (1) 34 intelligence, law enforcement and security personnel in Jordan, Iraq and Lebanon completed “train-the-trainer” instruction and led national training sessions for their peers, improving knowledge of on prevention and interdiction of attempted trafficking of nuclear or radiological materials; and (2) staged a regional tabletop exercise to increase awareness of the importance of regional coordination, cooperation and intelligence-sharing networks between intelligence, law enforcement and security personnel to prevent illicit trafficking on nuclear or radiological materials in Jordan, Iraq and Lebanon.