The nonproliferation regime is no longer upholding international security. As export control enforcement mechanisms prove ineffective in thwarting the transfer of fissile materials and as increasingly fluid networks elude conventional relationships and existing laws, the proliferation of nuclear technology is proving increasingly perilous. Under shifting alliances, the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) has been unable to deter countries like India and Pakistan from obtaining nuclear technology. Furthermore, international efforts to constrain the acquisition and use of nuclear weapons in Iran, North Korea, and elsewhere continue to falter.

Beyond Iran and North Korea, what threats loom over the horizon? Is the NPT an enabler or barrier to would-be bomb-makers? Is the new U.S. interest in spreading peaceful nuclear technology a promising idea or trouble in the making? In that vein, is civil nuclear cooperation with India legally or strategically desirable or possible? AEI and the Nonproliferation Policy Education Center will hold a joint conference to discuss these and other critical questions.