The United State’s aim is to enlist as many nations as possible to help secure all unsecured nuclear materials, which could fall into the hands of terrorists, within four years. President Barack Obama said: “The single biggest threat to U.S. security, in the short-term, medium-term and long-term, would be the possibility of a terrorist organization obtaining a nuclear weapon.”

 

But it’s not just the US that he has set his sights on. President Obama has taken on the global task of securing nuclear materials and keeping them out of the hands of terrorists. It is ambitious, no doubt. Mr. Obama wants all 47 countries to come to an agreement on a plan to secure the world’s stockpiles of plutonium and highly enriched uranium (HEU) - essential ingredients in the building of nuclear weapons - by 2013- a pledge he had made in Prague last year.

 

Thus far, Obama has been an eager beaver on this task. Armed with the new document signed and sealed on Tuesday and the new START agreement with Russia, Mr. Obama will be well prepared for next month’s Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty review conference at the United Nations. President Obama was the first U.S. president to preside over a U.N. Security Council on non-proliferation of nuclear weapons in September ‘ 09.

 

He said then quoting former President Reagan “A nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought. And no matter how great the obstacles may seem, we must never stop our efforts to reduce the weapons of war…we must never stop at all until we see the day when nuclear arms have been banished from the face of the Earth.”

 

The historic, two-day gathering of leaders from 47 countries which began Monday is not expected to result in any major strategy changes or declarations, but will put Obama in the driver’s seat in any global nuclear non-proliferation agenda.

 

It almost seems like Obama’s legacy search has begun. For a man who received his Nobel within the first year of his inauguration, Obama has an uphill task in securing lofty goals.