Funded by BMFTR

The research consortium “VeSPoTec” (“Verification in a complex and unpredictable world: social, political and technical processes”) explores the verification of states' compliance with their nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation obligations. A central feature of the research consortium is its integrated interdisciplinary approach: VeSPoTec combines technical and social science strands of peace and conflict research, thereby building a bridge between different areas of knowledge within verification research.

In the first funding phase (April 2022 to March 2026), VeSPoTec analyzed existing verification regimes in the nuclear field and, in close exchange with practitioners, developed perspectives for future verification scenarios. The focus was particularly on the underlying information bases and the methods used to evaluate them. In addition, the consortium examined the role of verification in building trust between states, including through practical verification exercises. Three central cross-cutting themes emerged: safeguards under crisis conditions, the reliability of verification (knowledge) in a multiplex world order, and the conditions for irreversible nuclear disarmament.

Building on these results, the second funding phase, titled “Knowing in the Nuclear Weapons World” (April 2026 to March 2028) is geared towards the strategic establishment of an internationally visible verification hub. It focuses on the political, epistemological, technical, and strategic processes that shape nuclear verification. Special attention is given to two focus areas: the reconfiguration of nuclear verification in the context of increasing geopolitical fragmentation and the breakdown of established arms control (1), and the role of artificial intelligence and new technologies in verification processes (2). The objective is to build an international research network and advisory center - the VeSPoTec Hub - that pools expertise and translates it into policy advice and training for young scholars.

Participating alongside INEF are RWTH Aachen, Forschungszentrum Jülich, and the Peace Research Institute Frankfurt (PRIF). As of April 1, INEF researcher Dr. Carmen Wunderlich will assume the role of spokesperson for the research consortium.

Project Site

Martuscelli, Patricia / Bandarra, Leonardo / Salari, Katie / Dalziel, Will. 2026: Mushrooms, cranes, and the fear of planetary destruction: exploring children’s imaginaries of war and nuclear anxiety, in: Critical Studies on Security, 14:2, 1–27. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/21624887.2026.2648445

Bandarra, Leonardo / Wunderlich, Carmen 2025: Faith and fear: a cognitive framework for why countries establish nuclear-weapon-free or nuclear-deterrence-based security orders, in: Nonproliferation Review, 31:4-6, 211–236. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/10736700.2025.2569147

Bandarra, Leonardo 2025: "A verification cotton between three crystal glasses”: ABACC and Alternative Nuclear Verification Mechanisms in South America (1967-1992), in: Revista Brasileira de Política Internacional, 68:1, 1-21. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1590/0034-7329202500108

Bandarra, L. / Mayhew, N. / Göttsche, M. 2024: The IAEO and Irreversibility: Addressing Political, Institutional, and Technological Verification Challenges in Former Nuclear-Armed States, in: Journal for Peace and Nuclear Disarmament, 1–20. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/25751654.2024.2440115

Bandarra, L. / Martuscelli, P. N. 2024: Moving Forward to a World Free of Nuclear Weapons (?): How Regional Issues Shape Global Non-proliferation and Disarmament Politics, in: Peace Review, 36: 2, 179–189. DOI:https://doi.org/10.1080/10402659.2024.2347425%5b

Bandarra, L. / Böschen, S. / Dürholt, A. / Geiser, R. / Göttsche, M. / Kretzschmar, S. / Niemeyer, I. / Ostermann, L. / Rademacher, L. / Schäfer, J. 2024: Nuclear Safeguards during Crises: Three Scenarios of Restricted Access to Nuclear Interim Storage Facilities, in: Zeitschrift für Friedens- und Konfliktforschung. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42597-024-00126-1

Senn, M. / Wunderlich, C. 2024: The Complexity of Nuclear (Dis)Ordering: A Research Agenda, in: Cambridge Review of International Affairs, 1-21. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09557571.2024.2436152

Dolev, S. / Bandarra, L. 2022: Towards an Achievable WMDFZ Treaty for the Middle East: Insights from Civil Society, in: Journal for Peace and Nuclear Disarmament, 5: 1. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/25751654.2022.2092369