ISIS Nuclear Attack, A Huge Threat In The World, Warns Obama

KABUL: (MEP) US President Barack Obama has warned that the prospect of Islamic State or other terrorists getting hold of a nuclear bomb is among the most serious threats faced by the world.

He used his final nuclear security summit on Friday in Washington DC, saying “madmen” could kill and injure hundreds of thousands of innocent people using only plutonium the size of an apple.

102 countries have agreed to make their nuclear sites more secure.

“We cannot be complacent,” Obama said, adding that no group had succeeded in getting their hands on nuclear weapons.

He pointed out, however, that al-Qaeda had long sought them and Islamic State had already used chemical weapons, including mustard gas, in Syria and Iraq.

Mr Obama cited progress in making large parts of the world free of nuclear materials. South America had already achieved this, and Central Europe and South East Asia were expected to do so later this year.

David Cameron, who also attended the meeting, offered British help to other countries to ensure terrorists could not get hold of radioactive materials.

Obama argued that since the first such summit six years ago, the world has measurably reduced the risk of nuclear terrorism by taking “concrete, tangible steps”. Enough material for more than 150 nuclear weapons has been secured or removed, he said.

During the summit, Obama announced that the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material would take effect soon. The agreement had been in existence for decades. But it was only in the past few weeks that it got the approval of at least two-thirds of all signatory countries, the number required for it to take effect.

The deal requires countries to implement more stringent methods to protect nuclear materials.  

“As a result, we expect that the treaty will enter into force in the coming weeks, giving us more tools that we need to work together in the event of theft of nuclear material or an attack on a nuclear facility,” Obama said.

Mr Obama hailed his own nuclear agreement with Iran, which has been criticised by Republicans and other groups for the sanctions relief it provides. He called it a “substantial success”.

“This is a success of diplomacy that hopefully we will be able to copy in the future,” he said.