An official delegation of nuclear security experts from the United States provided favorable feedback to the General Directorate of Customs after visiting the terminals that make up the Port of Buenos Aires, official sources reported today (19.09.2024).
The Argentine Customs specified that the delegation was composed of officials from the Nuclear Smuggling Detection and Deterrence Program (NSDD) of the U.S. Department of Energy. This program is dedicated to detecting, disrupting, and investigating the smuggling of nuclear materials.
“Argentina is one of the partner countries of the NSDD program and, as such, received radiation detection devices, communications systems and security equipment from the North American country to reduce the threat of nuclear proliferation and terrorism,” he said.
In this context, one of the objectives of the visit was to “verify the functionality of the equipment provided and, if possible, identify opportunities to improve its performance. In turn, they also “evaluated the performance of the customs agents who operate the NSDD system in our country and the Customs training program.”
Also, an evaluation of the Local Maintenance Provider (LMP) was carried out, a role occupied by INVAP SE, the Argentine high-tech company with headquarters in Bariloche.
The delegation in charge of Sabrina Ragaller and Savannah McLean, his deputy, together with experts in nuclear physical security, carried out field visits to the port terminals of Exolgan, TRP, Terminal 4 and BACTSSA.
After receiving the return from US officials, the Director General of Customs Eduardo Mallea He said: “It was very gratifying to hear the recognition of the NSDD representatives regarding the work carried out in this area by the Argentine Customs and, in particular, by its officials.” Mallea also assured: “The Argentine Customs will always be available to reinforce security in the region.”
This recognition underlines Customs’ continued commitment to nuclear security and international cooperation, reaffirming its crucial role in border control.
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