ABSTRACT
In 1986, Soviet General Secretary Gorbachev submitted a statement to the United Nations calling for a reliable system of measures to prevent nuclear terrorism. The International Task Force on Prevention of Nuclear Terrorism was convened in 1985 and commissioned a series of background papers analyzing the terrorist threat and strategies for dealing with it. The incentives for cooperation against nuclear terrorism are high precisely because of the potentially catastrophic consequences of such high-technology terrorism. The Convention, which has been ratified by both the United States and the Soviet Union, came into force in 1987. It requires its signatories to pass domestic legislation mandating prosecution or extradition of nuclear terrorists. The proposal was strongly oriented toward the prevention of a superpower conflict resulting from nuclear terrorism. Their 1983 report noted a "rising danger of nuclear terrorism." Economic incentives for civilian nuclear exports are strong. There is also some fear that publicizing the possibility of nuclear terrorism will give the idea to potential offenders.
