Presenting the International Atomic Energy Agency’s annual report to the General Assembly, Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said the past year had highlighted the importance of “knowing exactly the situation regarding nuclear materials and activities” in countries of concern.
THE IAEA “is working very determinedly to try to re-establish the essential dialogue” with Iran on inspection regimes and uranium enrichment, in order to facilitate a diplomatic solution.
“Inspections continue in Iran,” he noted, but “there is still some way to go” before the Agency’s monitoring and verification activities can be fully restored.
He highlighted a “technical agreement” reached in Cairo in July aimed at reestablishing inspections, stressing that “it is now up to us – Iran and ourselves – to continue» to guarantee the integrity of the non-proliferation regime in a region which has “experienced sufficient suffering”.
Syria
Regarding Syria, Grossi said his visit to Damascus earlier this year sparked “positive conversations” and that the IAEA was “reestablishing our inspection work there” to clarify unresolved questions about past nuclear activities.
Successful engagement, he said, could help reintegrate Syria “in a positive and constructive way” into the international community.
Ukraine
The IAEA chief also highlighted the agency’s continued presence on site at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant – Europe’s largest – where “external forces” [electrical] the power supply had been interrupted,” posing a dangerous risk to the reactor’s cooling systems.
The IAEA is monitoring the situation in collaboration with Ukraine and Russia, which has helped “address a very dangerous situation”, while warning that conditions at the Russian-occupied site remain precarious.
Defending the non-proliferation regime
Mr. Grossi called for a renewed international commitment to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), which he described as an anchor of “stability and certainty in a world that sorely needs it.”
He also highlighted the rapid growth in the peaceful use of nuclear energy technology and the work of the IAEA to ensure public safety.
The Agency’s initiatives include training female nuclear industry workers through Marie Curie and Lise Meitner scholarships and deploying nuclear technology for health, food safety and environmental protection.
Originally published at Almouwatin.com
