Statement of the United States of America on agenda item 6: Any Other Business: U.S. Initiative to Strengthen the IAEA
Madame Chair:
As you are all aware, earlier this year, U.S. President Bush enumerated the challenges faced by the international community regarding the spread of weapons of mass destruction, as well as made seven proposals to combat this threat to our collective security. Three of these proposals were specifically designed to strengthen the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in its work against nuclear proliferation:
First, nations that are serious about fighting nuclear proliferation should sign and implement the IAEA Additional Protocol; signature of the Additional Protocol should be a condition of nuclear supply by the end of 2005.
Next, the IAEA Board of Governors should create a special committee on safeguards and verification, in order to improve the IAEA’s capability to monitor compliance with nuclear non-proliferation obligations. This initiative is particularly important given the serious safeguards violations that this body has dealt with during the past decade, as well as the revelation of an international nuclear black market.
Finally, states should agree to the principle that, if at some point in the future they come under investigation for non-technical non-proliferation and safeguards violations and are on the Board or Special Committee, they would voluntarily elect not to participate in decisions by the Board or Special Committee regarding their own cases.
In the course of elaborating on these proposals at past Board meetings and in capitals, we have benefited from the collective wisdom of, and received many helpful suggestions from, our colleagues in member states. We are firmly convinced that only by combining our efforts and talents will it be possible to combat and defeat the scourge of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
Because of the short duration and challenging agenda of the current meeting, the United States decided not to press for further discussions on these proposals. Nonetheless, it is imperative that we concentrate our efforts over the coming weeks ahead to develop common ground for moving forward with these proposals during the next meeting of the Board. To that end, the United States would greatly appreciate receiving further comments on the U.S.-proposed draft terms of reference for the proposed special committee, the draft board decision to create such a committee, and the draft board resolution on membership on the Board and special committee that we circulated as part of our statement during the September meeting of the Board of Governors. Let us translate this vision into reality during the next Board of Governors meeting. To that end, we would stand ready to engage in consultations on this matter with our colleagues here in Vienna or in capitals. By acting favourably on these initiatives this spring, we will not only increase our collective security, but also send an important message to the NPT Review Conference about our shared determination to strengthen the IAEA and better equip it to respond to the challenges ahead.
Thank you, Madame Chair.
