Since our May 2002 report on nuclear smuggling, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has reported 481 additional confirmed cases of the smuggling of nuclear and/or radiological materials. One of these cases involved nuclear material suitable for use in a nuclear weapon. The majority of new cases IAEA reported involved radiological sources, which could be combined with conventional explosives to create a “dirty bomb.” According to IAEA, the majority of all reported incidents with radiological sources involved criminal activity, most frequently theft. Radiological sources and devices in which they are used can be attractive for thieves because of their perceived high resale value or the value of their ability to shield or encapsulate illegally shipped materials within legal shipments of radioactive materials. Some of the reported cases indicate a perceived demand for radioactive materials on the black market, according to IAEA. From 2003 to 2004, the number of incidents reported by IAEA substantially increased. IAEA indicated that improved reporting may, in part, account for this increase. As of December 2004, 82 of IAEA’s Member States were participating in contributing to the database. Detecting actual cases of illicit trafficking in nuclear material is complicated because one of the materials of greatest concern—highly enriched uranium—is among the most difficult materials to detect because of its relatively low level of radioactivity. Uranium emits only gamma radiation so detection equipment, which generally contains both gamma and neutron detection capabilities, only detects uranium from the gamma detector. However, gamma radiation emissions can be shielded by encasing nuclear material within another high density material, such as lead. Another nuclear material of great concern is plutonium, which emits both gamma and neutron radiation. However, shielding nuclear material generally does not prevent the detection of neutron radiation and, as a result, plutonium can be detected by neutron detectors regardless of the amount of shielding from high density material. According to DOE officials, neutron radiation alarms are only caused by man-made materials, such as plutonium, while gamma radiation alarms are caused by a variety of naturally occurring sources including commercial goods such as bananas, ceramic tiles, and fertilizer, in addition to dangerous nuclear materials, such as uranium and plutonium. The most common types of radiation detection equipment are radiation portal monitors; handheld equipment, including both survey meters and radioactive isotope identification devices; and radiation pagers. The radiation detection equipment that U.S. programs provide to foreign countries is commercially available, off-the-shelf technology. Radiation portal monitors are stationary pieces of equipment designed to detect radioactive materials being carried by vehicles, pedestrians, or railcars. Radiation portal monitors currently being provided by U.S. agencies have the ability to detect both gamma and neutron radiation, which is important for detecting highly enriched uranium and plutonium, respectively. According to DOE, radiation portal monitors with both gamma and neutron detectors cost between about $28,000 and $55,000, plus the additional costs associated with installing the equipment and communication systems necessary to operate it. Figure 1 shows a picture of radiation portal monitors with both gamma and neutron detectors. In 2002, we reported that some U.S. agencies, primarily State, provided radiation portal monitors that did not have the ability to detect neutron radiation to foreign governments. Because this equipment is capable of detecting only gamma radiation, it is less effective in detecting certain nuclear material, such as plutonium that has been shielded with high density material. Replacement cost for similar equipment (capable of detecting only gamma radiation), is about $5,000, not including installation costs, according to DOE officials. Figure 2 shows an example of such a radiation portal monitor. Handheld radiation detection equipment, such as survey meters and radioactive isotope identification devices, are used by customs officials and border guards to conduct secondary inspections, the aim of which is to localize the source of an alarm and determine the nature of the material present. Survey meters can be used to detect the level of radiation by providing a count of the radiation level in the area. Radioactive isotope identification devices, commonly known as RIIDs, identify the specific isotope of the radioactive source detected. In addition, U.S. programs often provide radiation pagers, which are small radiation detection devices worn on belts by border security personnel to continuously monitor levels of radiation in the area. Pagers are considered personal safety devices and, therefore, should not be relied upon to implement secondary inspections. Since fiscal year 1994, DOE, DOD, and State have spent about $178 million to provide radiation detection equipment to 36 countries as part of the overall U.S. effort to combat nuclear smuggling. However, because some U.S. agencies provide radiation detection equipment to foreign countries on an as needed basis, future U.S. government spending requirements for such assistance are uncertain. DOE has spent about $131 million to provide radiation detection equipment and training to 12 countries and to maintain certain types of equipment previously installed by other U.S. agencies in 23 countries. DOD has also spent almost $22 million to provide radiation portal monitors, handheld radiation detection devices, and radiation detection training to 8 countries in the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. Similarly, State has spent about $25 million to provide various types of radiation detection equipment and related training to 31 countries. (See table 1.) Since fiscal year 1998, DOE has spent about $130 million through its SLD- Core program to provide radiation detection equipment and training at 83 border sites in Russia, Greece, and Lithuania and to maintain certain types of equipment previously installed by State and other U.S. agencies in 23 countries. DOE recently signed implementing agreements with the governments of Azerbaijan, Georgia, Slovenia, and Ukraine and will begin work in those countries in fiscal year 2006. Through its SLD-Core program, DOE currently plans to install radiation detection equipment at a total of about 350 sites in 31 countries by 2012 at an estimated total cost of $570 million. In addition, DOE spent about $1 million to provide radiation detection equipment to nine countries through its Cooperative Radiological Instrument Transfer project (CRITr), which began in 2004. Through CRITr, DOE refurbishes previously decommissioned handheld radiation detection equipment located at various DOE sites and provides this equipment to foreign law enforcement officers. DOE plans to provide handheld equipment to six additional countries through the CRITr project in fiscal year 2006. Through the end of fiscal year 2005, DOD had spent about $22 million through two programs to provide handheld radiation detection devices to eight countries in the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe and to install fixed radiation portal monitors in Uzbekistan. Specifically, through its Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation Prevention Initiative (WMD- PPI), DOD spent about $0.2 million to provide various types of handheld radiation detection equipment to three countries and about $6.4 million to install radiation portal monitors at 11 sites in Uzbekistan. DOD plans to complete installation at 6 more sites in Uzbekistan by the end of fiscal year 2006 and to finish all associated radiation detection work in Uzbekistan by fiscal year 2009 at a total cost of about $54 million. In fiscal year 2006, DOD plans to transfer responsibility for maintenance of the equipment it has provided to Uzbekistan to DOE’s SLD-Core program. Through its International Counterproliferation Program (ICP), DOD has spent about $15 million to provide handheld radiation detection equipment and training on weapons of mass destruction proliferation prevention to 6 countries in the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. In addition, DOD has provided a variety of training on weapons of mass destruction proliferation to 17 additional countries. Through ICP, DOD plans to continue to provide limited amounts of handheld radiation detection equipment to other countries in the future. The Department of State, through three programs—the Export Control and Related Border Security program (EXBS), the Nonproliferation and Disarmament Fund (NDF), and the Georgia Border Security and Law Enforcement program (GBSLE)—has spent about $25 million since fiscal year 1994 to provide radiation detection equipment and related training to 31 foreign countries. State’s EXBS program has spent approximately $15.4 million to provide radiation portal monitors, various types of handheld radiation detection devices, X-ray vans equipped with radiation detectors, and training on how to use this equipment to 30 countries mainly in the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. Similarly, through NDF, State spent about $9.1 million from fiscal year 1994 through 2001 to, among other things, install portal monitors in countries other than Russia, provide handheld radiation detectors, and provide vans equipped with X-ray machines to countries, including Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland. Lastly, through its GBSLE program, State spent $0.2 million in 1999 to provide border guards and customs officials in the Republic of Georgia with 137 radiation pagers. State has not provided any additional radiation detection equipment assistance through NDF since 2001 or through its GBSLE program since 1999. Because some U.S. programs provide radiation detection equipment to foreign countries on an as needed basis and DOE has yet to gain agreements with all of the countries where it would like to install equipment, future U.S. government spending requirements for radiation detection assistance remain uncertain. For example, although DOE is the primary U.S. agency responsible for installing radiation portal monitors in foreign countries, State selectively funds projects to provide radiation portal monitors to foreign countries through its EXBS program. State officials told us that State coordinates its work in this area with DOE to avoid duplication, and it conducts these projects on an as needed basis to provide a quick response to emerging nuclear smuggling threats. For example, in December 2005, State installed portal monitors and provided handheld radiation detection equipment to one site in Armenia at a cost of about $0.5 million, in part because it believed that the threat of nuclear smuggling warranted immediate installation of this equipment.