VIENNA // As Iran pledged to restart talks over its nuclear programme, the outgoing head of the International Atomic Energy Agency warned that international safeguards against the spread of nuclear weapons may be in jeopardy.
In what could be his last major speech as the director general of the agency, Mohamed ElBaradei said on Monday that insufficient funding and legal authority were undermining the IAEA's effectiveness as the world's nuclear monitor. He urged the UN Security Council to grant it more powers to prevent the spread of nuclear arms technology and to avoid relying on sanctions that he said were often ineffective and harmed the vulnerable and innocent.
Mr ElBaradei's remarks were a clear reference to Iran, which has failed to satisfy the IAEA that its uranium enrichment programme is not linked to nuclear weapons research, in part because it does not allow snap inspections that range beyond declared nuclear sites. The United States, among other world powers, suspects such a link, while Tehran insists its nuclear development activities are entirely peaceful.
"I should make it very clear that our ability to detect possible clandestine nuclear material and activity depends on the extent to which we are given the necessary legal authority, technology and resources. Regrettably, we face continuing major shortcomings in all three areas, which, if not addressed, could put the entire non-proliferation regime at risk," Mr ElBaradei said in his opening speech to the general conference of the 150-member IAEA.
He also said the agency was underfunded, and spelt out the potential consequences if that continued: "Our ability to maintain an independent and credible verification system will deteriorate; the world's vulnerability to a repeat of a disaster like Chernobyl will increase; the risk of terrorists obtaining nuclear or radioactive materials and using them will grow; our ability to meet the needs of developing countries facing growing hunger, poverty and disease will be eroded."
According to reports on Iranian state television, Tehran and six world powers seeking to resolve their stand-off over Iranian nuclear ambitions are to start talks early next month. "It's an important first step and we are hoping for the best," Steven Chu, the US secretary of energy, said on Monday in Vienna. "We are of the belief that dialogue and unconditional negotiation is the key to resolving disputes," Aliakbar Salehi, the vice president of Iran and president of the country's Atomic Energy Organisation, told the IAEA conference. But Iran would not accept any "discriminative agreement", he said. Mr ElBaradei said the UN Security Council needed to develop "a comprehensive compliance mechanism" for nuclear non-proliferation that did not rely on sanctions, such as those used against Iran. "It must focus more on conflict prevention, peacekeeping and peacemaking, and address the insecurities that lie behind many cases of proliferation." He praised new US and Russian initiatives to reduce nuclear arsenals.
Mr ElBaradei's successor, Yukiya Amano, 62, who describes himself as the IAEA's designated "chief administrative officer" and is currently Japanese ambassador to the agency, declined to discuss details of his intended operating strategy after he takes office on December 1. But he said the IAEA secretariat felt strongly that the nuclear safeguards agreement between Iran and the agency should be fully implemented.
"The IAEA has not yet come to the conclusion whether the activities of Iran have been exclusively for peaceful purposes or not," he told reporters. "I believe that the agency is doing its utmost. More co-operation is needed." Speaking English haltingly, the diminutive career diplomat largely failed to impress the international press representatives assembled in Vienna. But he fared better at a cocktail reception after Monday's conference session, where he spent more than an hour mingling with delegates, accepting a stream of greetings on the confirmation of his appointment, and nodding, smiling and listening more than talking.
Mr Amano's behaviour, even more than his words, suggests he views his future role at the IAEA as one of behind-the-scenes consensus building. Instead of publicly articulating the IAEA's agenda through headline-grabbing policy statements, he is likely to try to guide the agency's work by fostering respectful professional relationships with the people with whom he interacts. "The IAEA needs to take a balanced approach, or the potential of the IAEA will not be achieved," he told reporters. "The IAEA is an effective organisation with high authority. Still, we need to make improvements."
Mr ElBaradei's style during his 12 years at the IAEA's helm was less conciliatory. On Monday, he acknowledged the agency's objectives were not always met during his tenure. For instance, little progress was made over nuclear disarmament, and a war was fought in Iraq after the IAEA and UN found no evidence of weapons of mass destruction there. tcarlisle@thenational.ae
