IAEA Board of Governors Meeting, Agenda Item 4b: Application of Safeguards in the DPRK

U.S. statement as delivered by Acting Counselor for Nuclear Affairs Edward T. Canuel
Vienna, Austria

Thank you, Mr. Chair.   

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK)’s nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs constitute a serious threat to international peace and security and the global nonproliferation regime.  Our goal remains the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, and we continue to take a calibrated, practical approach that seeks diplomacy with the DPRK to make tangible progress that increases the security of the United States, our allies, and our deployed forces.    

We share the Director General’s concern regarding recent activities at the 5MW reactor and Radiochemical Laboratory at Yongbyon consistent with the operation of these facilities and welcome the consensus agreement with this assessment by the Membership as adopted in GC(65)/RES/13.  We continue to seek dialogue with the DPRK so we can address this reported activity and the full range of issues related to denuclearization. 

We welcome the adoption by consensus of Resolution GC(65)/RES/13 at this year’s General Conference. We deplore the DPRK’s ongoing nuclear activities and call upon the DPRK to return to the NPT and the IAEA safeguards regime.  The GC resolution reiterates the need for the DPRK to fully comply with all of its obligations under relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions and calls on all Member States to implement their own obligations under these resolutions.  It is important for the international community to send a strong, unified message that the DPRK must halt provocations, abide by its obligations under UN Security Council resolutions, and engage in sustained and substantive negotiations with the United States. 

Finally, Mr. Chair, we once again express our appreciation and support for the IAEA’s sustained attention to this issue and its continued efforts to maintain readiness to resume monitoring and verification activities in the DPRK. 

Thank you, Mr. Chair.