The VCDNP and the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies (CNS) at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey held their third diplomatic workshop in Baden, Austria, on 20-21 May 2016. The workshop brought together some two dozen Vienna-based ambassadors, IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano, Former Egyptian Foreign Minister Ambassador Nabil Fahmy and a number of senior officials from international organizations in Vienna, as well as non-governmental experts from think tanks, academia and industry.
The workshop focused on “Emerging Disruptive Technologies” and the potential impact such technologies (e.g., cyber, additive manufacturing, drones, autonomous weapons) could have on non‑proliferation and the work of the Vienna‑based international organizations. The workshop looked at ways to mitigate the potential risks these new technologies pose, as well as how to embrace their potential benefits to the international community. The workshop, which was conducted under the Chatham House rule, provided an excellent opportunity for issues to be discussed on the diplomatic and political level, as well as from the perspective of industry and science.