IAEA Board of Governors Meeting, Agenda Item 2: Report of the Technical Assistance and Cooperation Committee

U.S. statement as delivered by Political Officer Rachael Parrish
Vienna, Austria

Mr. Chair,

I would like to commend the Secretariat and especially the staff of the Technical Cooperation Department for their continued efforts to ensure the TC Program effectively responds to Member States’ needs.

The United States remains fully committed to supporting the work of the IAEA in the research, development, and deployment of nuclear energy, science, and technology for peaceful uses, consistent with Article Four of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. For over 60 years, we have been a leading supporter of IAEA TC activities to facilitate worldwide access to peaceful uses assistance, consistent with the highest standards of safety, security, and nonproliferation.

Mr. Chair,

The United States is pleased to remain the largest individual contributor to IAEA TC activities. Since 2010, we have contributed over 530 million U.S. dollars in support of peaceful uses activities such as the TC Fund, the Peaceful Uses Initiative, and other voluntary funding mechanisms. Since the Board met in September, we have made substantial contributions to the Insect Pest Control Laboratory to develop temperature treatment methods for controlling fruit flies and to the IAEA laboratories in Monaco to support work focused on coastal dead zones and ocean acidification. Today, we are pleased to announce a contribution of 300,000 euros to support the final upgrades to the Dosimetry Laboratory as part of continued U.S. support for the Renovation of the Nuclear Applications Laboratories at Seibersdorf.

While the United States underlines our strong commitment to the TC Program and peaceful uses, we also underscore the objectives of improved, results-based management and transparency in the project planning and implementation of the TC Program. In addition, we note the special challenges facing Least Developed Countries and the continued importance of giving due consideration to LDC needs when designing TC projects and allocating TC funds. We encourage the IAEA to target TC project distribution to ensure that a higher percentage of the TCF is allocated to and received by LDCs.

Mr. Chair,

We note that the upcoming 10th Review Conference of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty is an important opportunity to address issues and challenges facing developing countries as they seek to access the benefits of peaceful uses to meet national development goals. Leading into the Review Conference, we have already begun this important discussion. Over the past two years, the United States and others have supported multiple workshops showcasing peaceful use success stories and identifying the challenges some countries face in accessing peaceful use technologies and applications. At the Review Conference, together with our colleagues from the United Kingdom, we will announce a new effort to promote continued global dialogue on these topics, working in close coordination with the IAEA. We will focus on convening a diverse range of technical and policy experts, including from industry and the development community, to identify new opportunities to address development needs through peaceful uses and to enhance the already critical role that the IAEA plays in this arena. We welcome broad support for this effort.

Mr. Chair,

With these comments, we would like to thank Singapore for chairing the Friends of the Rapporteur group this year and drafting the report. The United States is pleased to join consensus in approving the TACC report.

Thank you.