The Proliferation Security Initiative

The Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) is a global partnership of voluntary cooperation to interdict the transport of biological, chemical, and nuclear weapons, their delivery systems and related materials at sea, in the air or on land to and from actors of proliferation concern. 

The US Department of State describes the PSI as an effort “to involve in some capacity all states that have a stake in nonproliferation and the ability and willingness to take steps to stop the flow of such items at sea, in the air, or on land.  The PSI also seeks cooperation from any state whose vessels, flags, ports, territorial waters, airspace, or land might be used for proliferation purposes by states and non-state actors of proliferation concern.”

President Bush first announced the PSI on 31 May 2003 as a proactive initiative to respond to the international security challenge posed by the proliferation of chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons, as well as missile technology. 

In September 2003, 11 countries published the PSI Statement of Interdiction Principles, which stipulate legally non-binding guidelines for participating PSI countries.  Because the PSI is not a treaty-based organization, countries may join the US-led counter-proliferation effort by supporting these principles.  The Interdiction Principles define the term “actors of proliferation concern,” and call on states to exchange relevant information and to strengthen existing domestic and international rules and regulations. 

Participating countries can also sign bilateral ship boarding agreements that allow partner states to quickly gain access to a ship or aircraft as soon as it enters PSI territory.  The United States has signed such boarding agreements with Croatia , Liberia , the Marshall Islands , and Panama .    

The 11 original participating states of PSI are Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States.  Canada, Norway, Russia, and Singapore have joined the PSI since its launch in 2003.  Overall, the US claims the support of more than 60 countries that participate in simulation exercises, the first of which began taking place in October 2003.  These exercises, usually hosted or led by a specific country, serve to improve states’ cooperation mechanisms.     

The US asserts the success of the PSI since its inception in 2003, but does not publicize achievements “to ensure the successful future of the PSI.”  The 2003 interdiction of a Libya-bound vessel carrying centrifuge technology is often cited as an example of the success of PSI.  Libya, already engaged in negotiations with the United Kingdom and the United States over its secret nuclear weapons program, renounced its possession of nuclear weapons the same year.   

Some states have criticized the PSI for allegedly violating international law.  In May 2005, Cuba stated that the PSI interdiction principles are in violation of a state’s national sovereignty and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea .  Likewise, China has questioned the legitimacy of the PSI under international law. 

Source documents:

• Enhancement by Enlargement: The Proliferation Security Initiative. Charles Wolf, Jr., Brian G. Chow, and Gregory S. Jones. RAND Corporation, December 2008.
• Fact Sheet: The Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI). US Bureau of International Security and Nonproliferation, May 2008.
• Fact Sheet: Proliferation Security Initiative Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ). US Bureau of International Security and Nonproliferation, May 2008.
• Statement by the President on the Fifth Anniversary of the Proliferation Security Initiative, May 2008.
• Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI). Mary Beth Nikitin, CRS Report for Congress, February 2008.
• Present at the Creation: U.S. Perspectives on the Origins and the Future Direction of the Proliferation Security Initiative. Ian Davis, David Isenberg and Katherine Miller. British American Security Information Council, February 2007.
• The Proliferation Security Initiative: Targeting Iran and North Korea? Richard Bond. British American Security Information Council, January 2007.
• President Bush's Statement on Proliferation Security Initiative, May 2006.
• The Proliferation Security Initiative , Bureau of Nonproliferation, U.S. Department of State.
• Statement on Non-Proliferation, G8 States, Gleneagles G8 Summit, July 6-8, 2005.
• The Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI): A Record of Success, Stephen G. Rademaker, Assistant Secretary of State for Arms Control, Testimony before the House International Relations Committee, Subcommittee on International Terrorism and Nonproliferation, June 9, 2005.
• Statement on the Proliferation Security Initiative, U.S. Rep. Ed Royce, House Subcommittee on International Terrorism and Nonproliferation, June 9, 2005.
• President's Statement on the Proliferation Security Initiative, Office of the Press Secretary,
  May 31, 2005.
• Remarks on the Second Anniversary of the Proliferation Security Initiative, Secretary Condoleezza Rice, May 31, 2005.
• Remarks on the Second Anniversary of the Proliferation Security Initiative, Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Downer, May 31, 2005. 
• U.S. Initiatives To Prevent Proliferation, Bureaus of Nonproliferation and Public Affairs, May 27, 2005.
• Proliferation Security Initiative Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ), Fact Sheet, Bureau of Nonproliferation, May 26, 2005.
• The Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI): Second Anniversary, Fact Sheet, Bureau of Nonproliferation, May 26, 2005.
• Proliferation security initiative: legal consequences from the standpoint of international law: Working paper of the Republic of Cuba , NPT Review Conference, May 4, 2005.
• "Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI)," Sharon Squassoni, Congressional Research Service, January 14, 2005.
• Stopping the Spread of Weapons of Mass Destruction in the Asian-Pacific Region: The Role of the Proliferation Security Initiative, John R. Bolton, Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security, Tokyo American Center, October 27, 2004.
• The Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) Maritime Interdiction Exercise hosted by Japan, The Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, October 18, 2004.
• Statement on Proliferation Security Initiative, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, June 29, 2004.
• The Proliferation Security Initiative, Statement by Ambassador Stanislaw Przygodzki, Deputy Permanent Representative of the Republic of Poland to the United Nations Office at Geneva, June 3, 2004.
• PSI and the Shipping Industry, Statement by Deputy Minister Kim Traavik, Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, June 1, 2004.
• Chairman's Statement at the First Anniversary Proliferation Security Initiative Meeting, Krakow, Poland, May 31-June 1, 2004.
• Press Conference on the Proliferation Security Initiative, John R. Bolton, Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security, U.S. Consulate General in Krakow, May 31, 2004.
• The Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI), Susan F. Burk, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Nonproliferation, Remarks at the Global Transshipment Control Enforcement Workshop, Valletta, Malta, May 11, 2004.
• Remarks to the Proliferation Security Initiative, Remarks by James Wright, Assistant Deputy Minister, Global and Security Policy, Canadian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, April 16, 2004.
• Remarks to Proliferation Security Initiative Conference, Remarks by Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz, National Defense University, December 17, 2003.
• Proliferation Security Initiative: Statement of Interdiction Principles, John R. Bolton, Under   Secretary for Arms Control and International Security Affairs, Remarks at Proliferation Security Initiative Meeting, Paris, France, September 4, 2003.
• Proliferation Security Initiative: Statement of Interdiction Principles, Fact Sheet
  The White House, Office of the Press Secretary, September 4, 2003.
• Weapons of Mass Destruction: The Greatest Threat to International Security, Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Alexander Downer, Speech at the Proliferation Security Initiative Meeting, Brisbane, 9 July 2003.
• Remarks by the President to the People of Poland, Krakow, Poland, May 31, 2003.
• PSI Chairman's Statements , 2003-2004.