Looking Back: The 1978 NNPA

The Carnegie Endowment's Sharon Squassoni, writing for the Arms Control Association, has offered a look back at the 1978 Nuclear Nonproliferation Act in the context of the recent US-India nuclear deal. She makes the point that, while many of the original goals of the NNPA remain unrealized, it has provided a critical bulwark against proliferation and needs renewed engagement in the wake of the India deal, which has dealt it an unprecedented blow:

"The successes and failures of the NNPA may be more relevant than ever as the nuclear nonproliferation community continues to grapple with the dilemmas posed by India, Iran, and a potential expansion of nuclear energy across a wide swath of states. New institutional frameworks are needed to curb enthusiasm for engaging in uranium enrichment and spent fuel reprocessing. The United States, no longer the pre-eminent nuclear supplier, must gain wide support for implementing a vision of a nuclear fuel cycle that poses fewer proliferation risks than before. Moreover, the United States needs to begin taking seriously the NNPA's call to identify alternative options to nuclear power to meet countries' energy needs, particularly low-carbon-emitting sources."

Meanwhile, talks with North Korea have broken down again, leaving the North's nuclear program, along with other unfinished business from the Bush years, to the incoming administration.