CNS is pleased to announce the appointment of Elena K. Sokova to the position of Executive Director of the new Vienna Center for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation (VCDNP). She will move to Vienna in mid-May to take up her post.
Sokova joined CNS in 2000 and held a number of research and senior management positions, including most recently CNS Assistant Director.
She is a graduate of Moscow State University's Law School and earned a master's degree from the Monterey Institute of International Studies. Sokova is an expert on nuclear security issues, nuclear energy and nonproliferation, illicit trafficking, and nonproliferation education and training.
She is the author and co-author of numerous book chapters and articles on these issues, and has participated in and organized many international conferences, seminars, and training programs on WMD nonproliferation and security.
The new VCDNP offices are located in the Andromeda Tower next to the Vienna International Center, which houses many international organizations including the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO).
Within a week of opening its doors in early April, the Center hosted a group of about 20 experts for discussions on potential options the international community could take in moving forward efforts aimed at strengthening nuclear security.
This meeting was held in the VCDNP's new conference room, a facility that will be regularly used for seminars and training programs, and will help the Center fulfill its mission of serving as an international hub for discussing the major challenges facing disarmament and nonproliferation.
The small group meeting on nuclear security at the Center was followed by a larger event at the Japanese Mission in Vienna on April 13, 2011. This conference, entitled "Next Generation Nuclear Security: Measuring Progress and Charting the Way Forward," was organized by the VCDNP and the Fissile Materials Working Group.
Over 100 experts and government officials participated in this event, which was held on the first anniversary of the 2010 Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, D.C..
The April 13 event reviewed the progress made by countries on their commitments from the 2010 Nuclear Security Summit, Eurasian regional nuclear security efforts, status of international education and training in nuclear security, and the role the IAEA is playing in advancing nuclear security. The event also looked ahead to the next Nuclear Security Summit scheduled for 2012 in South Korea.
The discussions at the conference provided numerous ideas and recommendations for moving the nuclear security agenda forward, ensuring sustainable implementation of national commitments made at the 2010 Summit, and setting goals for the 2012 Summit and beyond.
