The U.S.-Japan Nuclear Security Working Group convened for its 12th meeting at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee earlier this month for a wide-ranging discussion on nuclear non-proliferation issues.
Corey Hinderstein, the National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA) deputy administrator for defense nuclear nonproliferation, and Ambassador Mitsuko Hayashi, deputy director general of Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Disarmament, Non-Proliferation and Science Department co-chaired the meeting.
The bilateral group, founded in 2011 “is an important forum for the United States and Japan to collaborate to solve the world’s toughest problems, ranging from nuclear safeguards to nuclear transportation security to plutonium management,” Hinderstein said in a statement.
Other areas of cooperation under the NSWG include research and development, minimizing special nuclear material and countering nuclear smuggling.
Also represented at the gathering were the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Defense and State departments, and the FBI. Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, national police agency, coast guard, and the Japan Atomic Energy Agency also participated.
“Close cooperation between Japan and the United States in this area is becoming more important,” Hayashi said. “Under the drastically changing international situation, we would like to further strengthen cooperation with the United States, which is an important partner in the field of nuclear security, while utilizing this NSWG framework, and contribute to strengthening nuclear security in the world.”
The 13th U.S.-Japan NSWG will take place in Japan in 2024.
