Abstract 

Nuclear security is a shared regional concern, and not just for states that are operating nuclear power plants, since all states use nuclear science and technology for various peaceful purposes especially in industrial facilities, health and medicine, climate change adaptation, soil and water management, environmental protection, and agricultural production. However, without adequate regulatory oversight on the use and handling of nuclear and radioactive materials, there is a risk that such materials could be used in criminal, terrorist, or intentional unauthorised acts by a malicious non-state actor, posing a threat to both national security and human security. Nuclear security governance in the Asia-Pacific and civilian nuclear cooperation among states are indeed crucial given the importance of securing the peaceful use of nuclear energy and technology. Nuclear security is an issue that is of increasing salience to ASEAN’s political and security agenda. And in 2018, the East Asia Summit (EAS) highlighted the importance of regional cooperation on nuclear safety and security in the Asia-Pacific.

This webinar will explore national and regional pathways towards building a robust framework for nuclear security governance in the Asia Pacific. It will feature nuclear security experts to discuss sustaining commitments and actions from Southeast Asia, the United States, Japan, South Korea, China, and other key regional nuclear cooperation networks in the Asia-Pacific. They will explore if the progress on building nuclear security cooperation in Southeast Asia can serve as a regional pathway to nuclear security governance in the Asia-Pacific.

About the Speakers

Dr Trevor Findlay is Principal Fellow in the School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Melbourne. He has a BA Honours degree in political science from the University of Melbourne and a master’s degree and PhD in international relations from the Australian National University (ANU). He is an Associate Research Professor at the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs at Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada, where he was a tenured professor for ten years, director of the Canadian Centre for Treaty Compliance and held the William and Jeanie Barton Chair. From 2011 to 2015, he was a senior researcher with the Project on Managing the Atom at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. He was a member of the UN Secretary-General’s Advisory Board on Disarmament Affairs from 2013 to 2017, serving as chair in 2017. He served for thirteen years in the Australian diplomatic service, followed by academic appointments at the ANU’s Peace Research Centre and the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute and seven years as Executive Director of the London-based non-governmental organization, the Verification Research, Training and Information Centre (VERTIC). Dr Findlay’s teaching and research specialisations include disarmament, arms control, non-proliferation, nuclear security, global nuclear governance and the future of nuclear energy.

Dr David Santoro is President of the Pacific Forum. He specialises in strategic deterrence, arms control, and non-proliferation. Santoro’s current interests focus on great-power dynamics and US alliances, particularly the role of China in an era of nuclear multipolarity. His new volume U.S.-China Nuclear Relations – The Impact of Strategic Triangles was published by Lynne Rienner in May 2021. Santoro also leads several of the Forum’s track-1.5 and track-2 strategic dialogues.

Mr Tom Corben is Research Associate in the Foreign Policy and Defence Program at the United States Studies Centre. He was previously a resident Lloyd and Lilian Vasey Fellow with Pacific Forum, where he worked on Japanese and Korean domestic politics and foreign policy, and Australia’s engagement with Northeast Asia. Tom has published widely on these issues for a range of platforms, including The Diplomat, East Asia Forum, and The Strategist. He has been a tutor in Australian Foreign Policy at the University of New South Wales and is a Pacific Forum Young Leader. Tom holds a BA (Honours) in Asian Studies and International Relations from the University of New South Wales.

Dr Hosik Yoo is Vice President of the Korea Institute of Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Control (KINAC), where he focuses on the implementation of regulation and policy development on nuclear security and nuclear non-proliferation. He has been working in the field of nuclear for more than 30 years. Prior to KINAC, Dr. Yoo served as the nuclear scientist at KAERI (Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute) for developing nuclear fuel. He has authored several papers and reports on nuclear security and nuclear non-proliferation. He advised the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea on issues related to implementation and the international legal framework for nuclear security and nuclear non-proliferation in preparation for the 2010, 2012, 2014 and 2016 Nuclear Security Summit.

Dr Zha Daojiong is Professor at the School of International Studies and Institute of South-South Cooperation and Development, Peking University. His areas of expertise include international political economy and China’s international economic relations, particularly the fields of energy and natural resources, development aid and the economics-political nexus in the Asia Pacific region. In recent years, his research has extended to political and social risk management for Chinese corporations engaged in non-financial investments abroad. He is invited to serve as non-resident fellow in a number of public policy think tanks and advisory member on several international exchange associations, including the China chapter of the Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia Pacific (CSCAP) and the China Association for International Exchange. He joined the faculty of Peking University in 2007 and held prior positions at the Renmin University of China, the International University of Japan and University of Macau. He studied at the East West Center and the University of Hawaii, where he earned a Doctoral degree in political science.

Dr Masahiro Okuda is Engineer of the Integrated Support Center for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Nuclear Security (ISCN) of Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA). He is in charge of nuclear security capacity development as an instructor of training courses of ISCN/JAEA. His expertise covers nuclear non-proliferation export control, international relations and international security. Dr Okuda has received Ph.D. in Security Studies from Takushoku University in March 2018.

Ms Naoko Noro is Chief Training Instructor at the Integrated Support Center for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Nuclear Security, Japan Atomic Energy Agency (ISCN/JAEA). Her expertise includes nuclear security, CBRNE terrorism and international security. Before joining ISCN, Ms Noro was an Associate Fellow at Research Institute of Science and Technology for Society, Japan Science and Technology Agency (RISTEX/JST), Tokyo, Japan. At RISTX, she conducted research on counter-terrorism. She obtained her master’s degree in Security Policy studies at the Elliott School of International Affairs, George Washington University.

Mr Julius Cesar I. Trajano is Research Fellow at the NTS Centre, RSIS. He is also presently a member of the leadership team of the International Nuclear Security Education Network, the Asia-Pacific Nuclear Advisory Panel, and the Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia-Pacific- Nuclear Energy Experts Group. Mr Trajano conducts policy research studies and has publications on non-traditional security issues, particularly on nuclear security and safety governance in the Asia-Pacific, peacebuilding, and human trafficking. Among his latest publications include  “The Future of Nuclear Security in the Asia-Pacific: Expanding the Role of Southeast Asia” (International Journal of Nuclear Security, 2020).