Is Nuclear Terrorism a real threat to modern society?

Nuclear Terrorism was addressed by President Obama in his 2009 Prague Speech, he stated that it was the 'single most important threat' to U.S. and worldwide Security. The two primary methods of a terrorist group getting hold of nuclear weapons would be for them to directly steal a Nuclear Weapon from a states nuclear arsenal or for them to acquire the compounds in order to develop a nuclear weapon. Even a piece of radioactive plutonium the size of an apple would be enough to pretty much destroy an entire city and kill hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians. It would also cause worldwide economic and political consequences. To prevent nuclear terrorism the west needs to stop terrorist groups such as ISIS and Al-qaeda from getting hold of nuclear weapons and nuclear compounds.

Although, terrorists acquiring fissionable materials and therefore creating a nuclear weapon is still a considerable threat. The amount of nations with highly enriched uranium (HEI) and plutonium is decreasing and the amount of these materials is also lowering. This means that it is gradually getting harder for organisations such as ISIS and Al qaeda to get hold of these kinds of materials. The U.S. department of State has said that the threat of nuclear terrorism is lesser than it was five years ago.

In conclusion, I believe that important powers such as Russia and the USA should put more money into defeating terrorist groups and finding people who are involved in plotting attacks and punishing them accordingly. However, this doesn't cover the substantial amount of work that is going into defeating this common evil.