ISN/CTR administers the Partnership for Nuclear Threat Reduction (PNTR) which works to prevent states and terrorist groups from diverting, acquiring, or proliferating nuclear material, technology, or expertise that could be used to attack the United States.
In particular, PNTR works to strengthen
nuclear security practices and mitigating threats from radicalized or coerced personnel at sensitive nuclear facilities.
All known cases of theft involving nuclear material have been led or abetted by insiders.
To address this threat, PNTR focuses efforts to prevent radicalized, disgruntled, or coerced insiders from diverting nuclear material, technology, and expertise.
PNTR does not provide physical security upgrades or guard force training.
ObjectivesPNTR partners with nuclear scientists, technicians, and engineers, security personnel, institutional trainers, and technical organization decision-makers to promote technical cooperation and enhance nuclear security best practices.
PNTR projects broadly fall into one of three categories, listed in no particular order:
• Insider Threat Mitigation:
Activities to develop and implement trustworthiness programs and related regulatory guidance (i.e.
human reliability program, fitness-for-duty, etc.) at a facility, organizational, or national level and/or mitigate the risk of an insider threat.
• Nuclear Security Culture in Practice:
Activities that strengthen security practices and procedures, and reinforce personal responsibility of nuclear technical organizations' personnel for keeping nuclear material secure.