WASHINGTON, D.C. — In a hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), U.S. Senator Angus King questioned Jill Hruby, the Administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration, about the need to increase and improve U.S. detection capabilities to ensure terrorist organizations do not get ahold of nuclear weapons. King also stressed that deterrence alone is not an effective strategy for combatting threats from these extremist organizations intent on intimidating and hurting civilians — no matter the cost.

“One of my nightmares is a terrorist organization getting a hold of a nuclear weapon. And we’ve got North Korea, Iran — North Korea would probably sell anything if they could get cash for it. Talk to me about the technology of detection. Deterrence doesn’t work with 15 people who don't care about dying and don't have a capital city,” began Senator King.

“In other words, the whole theory of deterrence does not work with terrorists. So, the first line of defense has to be detection and understanding what is going on. Are we working in that direction? How do we know there might be a nuclear device in a container that is on his way to Miami,” asked Senator King.

“Well, a lot of the responsibility for detection is also with the Department of Homeland Security. But we develop technologies, and we place those technologies around the world,” responded Administrator Hruby. “We have a lot of those in place, they’re operating, and we are increasing the number of countries we are working with because of their neighborhood and because we want to make sure that the U.S. is their go to partner for that. So, we have increased the number of countries we are working with in terms of detection.”

“This should be a very, very high priority. Because, if those people on September 11 could have killed 3 million people instead of 3000, they would have,” said Senator King. “As sure as we are sitting here, there are people that are adversaries that are thinking about how to acquire a nuclear weapon.”

“I agree, Senator. It is a very high priority for us,” concluded Administrator Hruby.

As a senior member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and Chair of the Subcommittee on Strategic Forces, and a member of the Senate Select Committee of Intelligence, Senator King is an active, vocal supporter of the importance of democratic values and defeating terrorism. Earlier in the year, Senator King reflected on his January trip to the Middle East, warning that continued Houthi attacks, an Iranian-backed terrorist proxy, on international shipping lanes would warrant a response. Senator King has also been outspoken on the need to defeat Hamas, another Iranian-backed terrorist proxy based in Gaza, that massacred over a thousand innocent Israeli citizens, committed mass gender-based violence including rape, and took hundreds hostage. In a recent SASC hearing, he urged the Department of Defense and the Intelligence Community to stay focused on threats from terrorist cells.

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