A/33/PV.41 General Assembly

I invite the Director-General of lAEA, Mr. Sigvard Elound, to present the report of the Agency for the year 1977. 1

It is again a pleasure to have this opportunity to apprise the Assembly of recent develop- ments in IAEA in conjunction with the submission to the Assembly of the Agency's 1977 report. I should like to address in particular three matters which are of the utmost importance to the Agency. These are: The Agency's contribution to the prevention of nuclear-weapons pro- liferation, the role of nuclear power and the Agency's efforts to assist developing countries in its field of activity. 3. On 1 June I had the honour to address the tenth special session of the General Assembly, on disarmament,2 and to give an account of the Agency's efforts, in particular in the implementation of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons [resolution 2373 (XXII), annex] and other agreements. Today the situation is as follows. 4. One hundred and four nations are now parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. However, some non-nuclear-weapon States that have nu- clear facilities are still not parties to the Treaty. One of those countries has already demonstrated that it is capable of producing nuclear explosives. 5. In that respect the situation has not changed since the thirty-second session of the General Assembly last year; nor have the non-proliferation priorities changed. As before, the top priority remains that of securing the universal applica- tion of the non-proliferation Treaty or of equivalent safeguards, first in those countries that have plants which are not safeguarded and secondly in those countries where everything at this moment is under safeguards but where NEW YORK 6. I should like to stress that point. In every supple- mentary non-proliferation scheme that is being considered today-whether it takes the form of a so-called "technical fJ.x" or of a new institution such as the regional fuel-cycle centre-the application of IAEA safeguards is taken for granted. However, unless IAEA safeguards are univer.sally applied or at least are applied to all nuclear material in countries taking part in the scheme there will be significant loop-holes. 7. Equal priority must of course be gh',en to ensuring that the IAEA safeguards are and remain effective. This is not merely a question of achieving certain technical objectives. It is above all a political question. The Agency remains dep~ndent upon the political support of its 110 member States to ensure that the means-that is, the fmance and the qualified technicians-are prOVided to enable it to carry out its mandate. It also requires the full political co-operation of inspected States, without whose help it would not be possible to apply effective safeguards. 8. It is of some significance, therefore, that in September this year the General ConferenCe of the Agency un- mimously approved a substantial "increllse in the Agency's safeguards budget.3 That will rise from approximately $10 million in 1978 to $15 million in 1979, and will permit the Agency to increase its inspection force from approximately 90 to 150 inspectors. Together with the extensive ratifica- tion that the non-proliferation Treaty has already received and the even wider acceptance of IAEA safeguard~, this willingness of our member States to agree to a substantial increase in safeguarding activities at a time when the Agency's budget is under severe strain in my view re- presents a practical demonstration that the international community subscribes fully to the political imperative that there must be no further horizontal spread of nuclear weapons or nuclear explosives. That represents a reaffrrma- tion that the non-proliferation Treaty remains our bulwark against proliferation. It might be wished that the same support were forthcoming for other measures of nuclear arms control and disarmament. 9. The International Fuel Cycle Evaluation, which began la~ t year, is now fully under way, with 53 countries participating. It is expected that the results of that undertaking will further strengthen efforts to achieve the non-proliferation goal. Ul1:i1 then, we must do nothing to 3 See International Atomic Energy Agency, Resolutions and Other Decisions of the General Conference, Twenty-second Regu:Or Session, GC(XXII)/RES/357. A/33/PV.41 10. This implies that there is an equal obligation on supplying countries not to abridge or change their supply contracts. Irrevocable safeguards must be balanced by irrevocable commitments to supply. Moreover, as repre- sentatives know, article V~ ')f the .non-proliferation Treaty places solemn obligations on the nuclear-weapon States to work in good faith to end the nuclear arms race, while the preamble to the Treaty recalls the determination of the parties to the Treaty Banning Nuclear Weapon Tests in the Atmosphere, in Outer Space and under Water, signed in Moscow in 1963, "to seek to achieve the discontinuance of all test explosions of nuclear weapons for all time". In our concern to stop the spread of nuclear weapons to additional countries, let us never forget the real threat to peace represented by the growing arsenals of nuclear weapons. 11. The General Assembly will consider this year under its agenda item 35 the preparations for the second review conference of the States partiJs to the non-proliferation Treaty, which is to be held in 1980. I should like to assure the Assembly of the Agency's readiness to extend its full co-operation to the organizers of the conference and to provide the factual material that is requested, as for the first Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, held in 1975. 12. The Agency's safeguarding responsibilities have con- tinued to grow rapidly. Between 1976 and 1977 the number of nuclear plants under safeguards rose by. 50 per cent, and the amount of nuclear material more than doubled. By the end of last year the Agency was inspecting 100 power reactors and 169 research reactors. The amount of plutonium under safeguards, nearly all incorporated in irradiated fuel, rose from 3 tons in 1972 to 36 tons in 1977. I believe, however, that that growth will level off in the years after 1979; by then nearly all the nuclear plants in non-nuclear-weapon States will be under safeguards- possibly with some significant exceptions, as I have pointed out-as well as civilian plants in France, the United Kingdom and the United States of America. 13. As history shows, there is no correlation between the spread of nuclear weapons and that of nuclear power. In assessing instances of proliferation since the early 1950s, say, one should bear in mind that nuclear power uew from 5 megawatts in 1954 to 100,000 megawatts at the end of last year. Nevertheless, in spite of all the facts and logic and against all argument, the opponents of nuclear power persist, irrationally, in maintaining that nuclear power leads to proliferation. The outcome of that argument and of other campaigns being waged by the opponents of nuclear 14. On the global energy front, there are certain steps the industrial world could take to ease the energy situatioa. Among the more important are the following. 15. First, the industrial world must take effective conservation measures to reduce the pressure of demand un the price and stocks of the world's dwindling oil reserves. As United Nations surveys have pointed out, for many developing countries, especially in Africa, there is probably no significant alternative to oil for the remainder of this century, and these countries will be particularly hard hit when demand outruns supply. 16. Secondly, the industrial countries must forge ahead with current nuclear-power programmes, which at present offer the only immediately available alternative to tradi- tional means of producing electricity on a large scale. 17. Thirdly, as developing countries turn increasingly to nuclear power in the next decades, they will be in competition with the industrial world for available uranium resources. To reduce this competition it is desirable that all countries should promote prospecting for uranium and that the development of the fast breeder reactor should con- tinue, since thereby the world's nuclear-fuel resources would be extended one hundredfold. 18. Fourthly, of course, as I have already said, the developing countries must be helped to introduce peaceful nuclear-power technology wherever this is economically promising. 19, The remarkable paradox that we now face is that~ while the Governments of the main industrial countries are committed to all, or most, parts of this four-point programme-and I recall in this connexion the statements of the Presidents and Prime Ministers of the leading free-market industrial countries at the Bonn Economic Summit Conference this spring-despite this commitment at the highest level, the introduction of nuclear power has slowed down considerably, and even halted in some countries. 20. We now have a situation in which, despite the commanding economic, safety and environmental ad- vantages that nuclear power has been shown to enjoy by more than 20 years of experience and an aggregate of 1,600 reactor-years of operation, and despite its steadily im- proving reliability, nuclear-power plant operators in the free-market countries are being compelled to turn to other sources of energy. One principal reason for this is the almost incredible complexity of the regulatory and jur!dical procedures that nuclear projects must now contend with. Although the time needed to build a nuclear-power plant is of the order of six years, it can now take as long as a dozen years in some industrial countries to steer a nuclear project from start. to finish through the maze of juridical and regulatory hurdles. The operator of the plant cannot plan effectively over such a long and uncertain time span, and his capjtal costs spiral as interest charges mount up. The matter is made even more difficult by major changes and uncertainties in Government policies in some countries. 22. What can international organizations, in general, and IAEA, in particular, do in these circumstances? 23. As I have pointed out in the past, the developing countries need a sound and reliable source to which they can turn for impartial tPcchnical advice about their energy plans in view of this very complicated picture of competing solutions and conflicting claims about their merits and drawbacks. I do not believe that this need involve the creation of any new organization. What is essential is a better concentration and closer link between the half dozen or so existing United Nations agencies that play a role in the energy field. I have always hoped that Vienna could be the focus of such a concentration. It is already the home of four energy-oriented bodies-IAEA, UNIDO, the Organiza- tion of Petroleum Exporting Countries and the Inter- national Institute of Applied Systems Analysis. The still available space in the new International Centre in Vienna suggests an appropriate way of taking this concentration further. 24. With regard to the environm~ntal impact of various energy technologies, I am happy to report that, as a result of good co-operation between UNEP, WHO} the Inter- national Institute of Applied Systems Analysis and IAEA, developing countries will be receiving unified and consistent advice on this subject. In particular, this will take the form of the results of a series of panels that UNEP is convenmg on different sources of energy. The first panel, on coal, met in April this year .in Poland; the next, on nuclear energy, in which the Agency will participate fully, will meet in November in Geneva; and the third, on renewable sources of energy, early in 1979. 25. The main sources uf technical assistance in the nuclear-energy field are the Agency's various programmes. As the report before this Assembly shows in its paragraphs 30 to 54, they have been growing steadily, although not nearly as f1st as many of the developing countries, and I myself, would wish. As I have said, the Agency's budget received unanimous support in September this year, but there were many developing countries that expressed regret that the growth in our safeguards activity was not matched by an increase in the programmes designed to promote the use of nuclear power, especially in the technical assistance programme. 27. One of the features of our programme most useful to these dozen countries are the three or four months' training courses that we hold each year on ~ubjects like the management, operation and construction of nuck...·-power plants. In 1977, we organized three courses of this kind in France, the Federal Republic of Germany and the United States with generous help from the host Governments. 28. For the majority of the developing countries members of IAEA, for which nuclear power is still a fairly distant prospect, the Agency's programmes for the use of nuclear science and nuclear techniques in food preservation and production, including insect control, in agricultural re- search, in medicine, in water resources developmen.t and in geological and industrial applications, are a significant source of aid. 29. I have referred to the likelihood that the world may run short of uranium early in the next century unless fast breeder reactors are introduced on a large scale. TP.~ price of uranium, like that of oil, has risen in recent years, although this has had much less effect on the cost of nuclear energy production, of which it is only a small component. It is encouraging to see that developing countries, particularly in Africa, are beginning to account for a larger share of proven world uranium reserves and production. The Agency is trying to stimulate this trend by an expanding programme of uranium prospection in all those countries where the geological indicators are en- couraging. Also, in collaboration with the Nuclear Energy Agency of the Organization of Economic Co-operation and Development, IAEA has been engaged in a uranium- evaluation project known as the International Uranium Resources Evaluation Project. The basic conc(;;pt of that project is to review the present body of knowledge pertinent to the existence of uranium resources, to review and evaluate the potential for discovery of additional _. uraniu.m resources, to identify areas favourable for such resour\~es, and to suggest new exploration efforts which might be carried out in promising areas b collaboration with the countries concerned. 30. I should now like to mention that in September this year the Board of Governors of the Agency accepted the statute of the Joint Inspection Unit, it being understood that the Joint Inspection Unit would not thereby become a subsidiary organ of the legislative bodies of the Agency, since this would h~ve statutory implications. The question of ratification of the statute of the International Civil Service Commission will be considered in February nex.t year by the Agency's Board of Governors. 32. It will be recalled that, at its twenty-first session, held in 1977, the General Conference adopted a resolution relating to the representation of t.'1e areas of Africa, the Middle East and South Asia on the Board of Governors.4 In accordance with that resolution the Board considered during the year an amendment to the statute proposed by a number of member States from South Asia and the Middle E~st. 33. In resol!ltion 32/49 the General Assembly last year also invited the Agency to give due consideration to the reque3t of developing countries for an increase in their representation on the Board of Governors in accordance with the principle of equitable geographical distribution. 34. The discussions at the General Conference are summed up in resolution 361, which notes that: "... the pl'Oposal for a moderate increase of one seat each in the representation of the areas of Africa and of the Middle East and South Asia on the Board was acceptable to a majority of the member States who participated in the discussions on this matter at the twenty-second regular session of the General Conference, while a smaller but significant number opposed it".5 35. By that resolution the General Conference, finally, requested the Board: {\... to give further consideration to the matter and submit its ohservations on the proposals for an increase in the representation of the ar1eas of Africa and of the Middle East and South Asia on the Board of Governors to the twenty-third regular session of the General Con- ference".6 36. The Assembly has before it also a report by the Secretary-Genei'.a! {A/33/332] on a matter referred to in General Assembly resolution 32/50 concerning the pos- sibility of convening at an appropriate state an international conference, under United Nations auspices, aimed at promoting internaHonal co-operation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, in accordance with the objectives set out in this resolution. . I 37. In accordance with the Secretary-General's request, the Agency has submitted certain information and observa- tions in this regard and informed the Secretary-General of its intention to convene a major international conference in 1981 or 1982 on nuclear power and its fuel cycle, similar to the very successful International Conference on Nuclear 4 Ibid., Twenty-first Regular Session, GC(XXI)/RES/353. 5 Ibid., Twenty-second Regular Session, GC(XXII)/RES/361. 6 Ibid. 38. Before concluding, I should like to take this oppor- tunity to inform the Assembly of the kind invitation from the Government of India to hold the twenty-third General Conference of the Agency, beginning on 5 December 1979, in New Delhi. This invitation was accepted with apprecia- tion by this year's General Conference. In view of the late date of the 1979 General Conference, the General As- sembly's comments on the Agency's annual report for 1978 can be taken into account by that Conference. 39. Finally, I should like to remind the General Assembly that during the summer of next ye'r IAEA will move to its permanent headquarters at the Vienn.. International Centre, the official inauguration of which is scheduled for 23 August 1979. This Centre was very generously constructed for the United Nations and IAEA by the Austrian Govern- ment and the city of Vienna. This is the highest example of the assistance and gracious welcome which the Austrian Government and the city of Vienna have always extended to IAEA and to other international organizations. 40. May I add that those of us who have had the good fortune to work in Vienna have had the happiest experience with the working and living conditions in that historic city. We are most appreciative of this and are grateful to the Government and the friendly and hospitable people of Austria.

On behalf of the General Assembly I should like to thank Mr. Eklund for introducing the report of JAEA. Before calling on the first speaker in the debate, I call on the representative of Saudi Arabia to introduce draft resolution A/33/L.5.

Before introducing draft resolution A/33/L.5, I wish to express thankS and deep gratitude-and I am sure I am speaking on behalf of all the members of the General Assembly in doing so-to a most distinguished scientist from Sweden, Mr. Sicvard Eidund, who has just given us a comprehensive report of the laudable activities of lAEA in Vienna. 43. Having said that and before I read, if not the whole draft resolution, its pertinent paragraphs, I should like to say "that I am indeed heartened by the presence of such an agency, because my memory takes me back to 1945 when, with the delegation of Saudi Arabia to the United Nations, we were voyaging back to Europe and from there to the Middle East and on 6 or 7 August we read the horrendous news that two atomic bombs had been dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. I felt as though we were approach- ing the end of the world, that it would take place in a few years-and rightly so. 44. I did not want Saudi Arabia to be a Memher of this Organization because of what had happened; but fmally I 45. What disturbed me was not only the inhumanity of man to man but the fact that it was within the reach of man to kill his fellow men En masse, and if there were survivors they would have radiation sickness and many of them would perhaps ask for their own demise rather than live in an abnormally diseased state all their life. 46. But hope began to appear on the horizon when I visited Vienna and found that an international atomic energy agency had its nuclem: :here. It had a governor, several vice-governors, chairmen, directors-or whatever name one wants to use-including none other than Mr. Molotov. It heartened me to see that ·ltose who had atomic weapons thought along the same lines as a famous Swede who thought that dynamite should be used for construction instead of destruction. I refer to Alfred Nobel, who instituted the Nobel Prize for peace and other human achievements. 47. But we are still living under the sword of Damocles- and here again I must not mention the dead alone. I must refer to two of my dear colleagues: Ambassadors Garcia Robles and Ortiz de Rozas, who have dedicated themselves to seeing to it that atomic energy will not be used for the . destruction of mankind, they being the pillars of the Special Committee, together with others, endeavou.ring to make sure that there will be no miscalculation, so that man may live and prosper. 48. It gives me pleasure to announce that the Saudi Arabian Mr. Kabbani was elected Chairman of the Board of Governors of that international organization in Vienna. It also gladdens my heart that ideology had no place in the selection of two Vice-Chairmen: Mr.Osztrovszki of Hun- gary, who belongs, I presume, to a socialist country, and Mr. Albonetti, who is considered as coming from a so-called Western country. The Agency is not predicated on ideology but on how to serve mankind in peace. 49. Again, like dynamite which is sometimes used for destruction, atomic energy that has been used for destruc- tion can, with the help of IAEA, work for progress, for construction and for making life easier by cheapening the price of fuel, inter alia, and for many other peaceful purposes. SO. We oil-producing countries have been maligned time and again by those who say that we hike the price of oil. It seems ironical that now the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the IAEA happens to be a Saudi Arabian. We want oil to be preserved, not used as a fuel, because one day we will, I hope, make protein from oil. If we cannot drink it we can purify it and eat it until the scientists can eliminate any alleged cai'cinogenic elements that are found in oil. Oil is protein, and it can yield more than protein; in the process there will be gases and other raw materials that can be put at the service of mankind, instead of on being used for the millions and millions of cars all over the world 52. So (AEA is working in the field of the peaceful uses of the atom. 53. Having said that, I consider it an honour to have been asked to present the draft resolution. I shall read only excerpts from it, since it has been distributed to members in the Assembly and t:-a~y are familiar with its text. 54. It is very rarely that I submit draft resolutions, and I usually do so on my own behalf. I leave myself free on many other subjects so that I may play the role of one who seeks for a compromise between States whenever the necessity arises. SS. I have been approached by the representatives of several countries here who would prefer to see the text of draft resolution A/33/L.5 slightly amended here and there. I agree with them that such suggestions or amendments would improve it and not detract from the sole purpose of the draft resolution, which is to strengthen IAEA. There- fore, I would ask my colleagues for heaven's sake not to politicize this Agency through. verbiage, through in- troducing too many amendments, or through submitting another draft resolution. Let us vote for the draft resolu- tion before us by consensus if possible. . 56. If Jome representatives need a little time, I am not averse, Mr. President, to your giving us a little respite from an immediate vote in order that we may incorporate in the text whatever suggestions would strengthen the draft resolution or, fQ! certain reasons, make it more acceptable to some of our colleagues. 57. What does the draft resolution say? The first para- graph of the preamble says, "Having re!:eived the report of the Ititernational Atomic Energy Agency ...". The second paragraph says, "Noting that the statement of the Director- General ..."-which we have just heard-"... of 2 Novem-- ber 1978 •..". The third paragraph states: "Considering the important role played by the International Atomic Energy Agency in the field of peaceful uses of nuclear energy ...". This is factual. 58. A Swedish member of the Agency, while he had no reservations, wanted some different wording in the latter part of that paragraph, which ( am not averse to. 59. In the next paragraph we fmd we appreciate "... the contribution of the International Atomic Energy Agency to the assessment of uranium resources ...". That is also factual; we all appreciate the contribution of that Agency. What is wrong with that? 61. The next paragraph says: "Noting with satisfaction the work of the International Atomic Energy Agency in the realization of the pro- visions of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear W " eapons .... 66. Two other suggestions were submitted to me with regard to operative paragraph 5. The ftrst is a very minor one but I believe it is a logical suggestion. It was made by countries of Latin America, because they are so deeply interested in and committed to IAEA. There was an omission-not an intentional one, I can assure you-from the text, which at present reads: That is also a statement of fact, because we all do appreciate what has been done. 62. Then we come to the next paragraph, which touches upon "... the special needs of the developing countries for technical assistance by the International Atomic Energy Agency ...". What is wrong with that? 63. The next paragraph·-the eighth preambular para- graph-is one that some would like to see amended a little by the addition, at the end of the paragraph, of the words , "and its resolution 32/87 F of 12 December 1977". This is a good reference to what took place in December 1977, namely the adoption of such a resolution. They said to me, "Where does Latin America come in? We are committed. We should like to play an active part like others. We are developing countries." So I suggested incorporating the words "and Latin America" in that paragraph. 64. Another suggestion was made to me by several States with regard to operative paragraph 4, which says, 67. Others also suggested that I should change a few words, not radically but so as perhaps better to reflect what could be done. I will read it again: "Notes with interest the intention of the International Atomic Energy Agency to hold another major inter- national conference on nuclear power and its fuel cycle, similar to the one held at Salzburg in May 1977 ...". 65. You will remember that a reference to that conference was made in one of the preambular paragraphs. After those words they want to replace the phrase "and recommends that the scope of the conference should be broadened" by the words "and requests it to consider broadening the scope of the conference". In the draft resolution submitted by Saudi Arabia the phraseology is as follows: But my friends who approached me before I spoke said, "Why don't you say 'with a view to reaching an early decision'? " I think this is reasonable. I do not see how a prompt decision could be arrived at spontaneously; a decision needs deliberation, and exchange of views and reflection. What is wrong with saying "with a view to reaching an early decision"? It is better than saying "to reach a decision as soon as possible". This cliche is used quite often, but sometimes no one knows when the possibility will occur. Here, it is "an early decision", which is definite, instead of a prompt decision, which may not be easy to attain. So I ask that this text be amended to read: "... with a view to reaching an early decision". "... and recommends that the scope of the conference should be broadened to include the consideration of measures to promote international co-operation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy for economic and social development, particularly in the developing countries". The phraseology of the suggested text would be: "... and requests it to consider broadening the scope of the conference to include the consideration of measures to promote international co-operation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy for economic and social develop- ment, particularly in the developing countries". 68. The last paragraph is the usual one requesting the Secretary-General to transmit to the Director General of IAEA the records of the thirty-third session of the General Assembly relating to the Agency's activities. I do not see any difference in the meaning, but it is a peculiarity of the human mind to consider certain words as symbols that denote more or less precise ideas. We all take 69. Sir, I thank you and my colleagues for having been indulgent while I have given you the background of IAEA "Invites the International Atomic Energy Agency to give furthrr consideration to the proposals for an increase in the representation of the areas or Africa and the Middle East and South Asia ..." "... in the representation of the areas of Africa and the Middle East and South Asia"-and I added here-"and Latin America on the Board of Governors, with a view to reaching a prompt and fair decision". 70. Having said this, I hope that if reasonable time is given to digest the suggestions I have just made, or to consider them favourably, we shall be able to reach & consensus decision on such a draft resolution.

Be- fore giving the floor to the first speaker in the debate, I shall call on the representative of Yugoslavia, who wishes to introduce draft resolution A/33/L.6.

I wish first of all in my statement to refer to the f1::port of IAEA, and secondly to introduce on behalf of a group of sponsors draft resolution A/33/L.6 which was submitted on 1 November 1978. 73. The report of IAEA reflects faithfully the significant work done by the Agency in the past yer.r and confums the importance of the varied and useful activities pursued by the Agency in the interest of the international community. 74. In endorsing the report, I wish to thank the Director General, Mr. Eklund, and the members of the secretariat of the Agency for the successful manner in which they have carried out various activities in discharging the Agency's statutory obligations despite the extremely complex condj,- tions in which they had to operate. We are considering the report of the Agency at a time when the question of the development and transfer of nuclear technology for the peaceful use of nuclear energy is becoming one of the key elements in the development of every country, and in particular of the accelerated development of developing countries. It is not astonishing, therefore, that great attention is devoted to this question at various gatherings. The General Assembly of the United Nations has con- sidered this complex of problems from different aspects in plenary meetings and in several committees. 75. In connexion with last year's report of the Agency,7 the General Assembly adopted by consensus resolution 32/50 which laid down important principles for the promotion of co-operation in the field of the developmtmt and transfer of nuclear technology for the use of nuclear energy for peaceful social and economic development. The adoption of that resolution was an expression of the need felt by the international community to set in motion on a basis of equality, the search for the most suitable means of ensuring the unhampered development of nuclear tech- nology and changing the present system of monopoly of the nuclear developed countries. The principles embodied in General Assembly resolution 32/50 were reaffirmed at the tenth special session of the General Assembly, devoted to disarmament. As we are all aware, that resolution 71ntemational Atomic Energy Agency, The Annual Report for 1976 (Austria, July 1977). 8 Sce World Armaments and Disarmament: SIPRl Yearbook 1977 (Stockholm, Almqvist & Wiksel~ 1977), appendix 1 A. 76. The non-aligned countries devoted due attention to this problem at their ministerial Conference in Belgrade in July 1978. While emphasizing the exceptional importance of nuclear energy for accelerated social and economic development, the representatives of 87 non-aligned coun- tries considered as unacceptable. the monopolisticpoJicy of the nuclear Powers and called for broad action by the international community for the purpose of ensuring the f!.~e and non-discriminatory transfer of nuclear technology [see A/33/206, annex I, para. 152/. The non-aligned coun- tries agreed to draw up a joint programme for future action within the framework of the United Nations and other internationaL bodies, to co-ordinate their actions and to promote their mutual co-operation in this field; the Ministers supported th~ idea of convening an international conference under the auspices of the United Nations aimed at promoting international Go-operation in the peaceful use of nuclear energy, as aiready proposed in General Assembly resolution 32/50[ibid, para. 153}. 77. Unfortunately, those efforts of ~he non-aligned and other developing countries have not met with a satis(actory response from the majority of developed countries, es- pecially the countries members of the so-called "London Club".8 There is a tendency among some nuclear Powers to impose new restrictions on the transfer of nuclear tech- nology under the pretext of preventing the proliferation of nuclear weapons. One notices at the same time a tendency to bypass the policy role of IAEA in the field of the transfer of nuclear technology, while over-emphasizing the safeguarding role entrusted to it under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. 78. From the current report it emerges that the pro- gramme of the Agency still does not ensure in a satisfactory manner the solution of the problem of the accelerated transfer of nuclear technology, and consequen.tly does not satisfy the interests and requirements of developing countries. 79. The situation is similar with regard to the Agency's budget for 1979, which provides for a considerable in- crease, but not in those areas of fmancing that, in our opinion, should be accorded the highest priority. 80. My delegation feels that much greater emphasis should be laid on questions of technical assistance linked with the development of raw materials and with the fuel cycle. Therefore we believe that it is high time to deal with the question of technical assistance on a long-term basis, without discriminating against those developing countries that have not signed the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. Although a tlgnatory to the Treaty, Yugoslavia cannot accept att\;mpts to limit technical 84. In the reply of my Government conveyed to the Secretary-General it was stated that such a conference should consider all the aspects of the peaceful use of nuclear energy and should deal, inter alia, with the following topics: first, economic and political aspects of nuclear energy in the world; secondly, nuclear technology and the possibil1ty of disposing of it-the problem of transfer, industrial co-operation and so on; thirdly,.nuclear raw materials and their use; fourthly, problems of the abuse of nuclear energy; fifthly, legal aspects of the development of nuclear technology and,the utilization of nuclear energy; sixthly, problems of the human environment in connexion with the transfer of nuclear technology; seventhly, sci- entific and technical co-operation; eighthly, the role of international organizations-such as, IAEA in the transfer of technology and safeguards; UNIDO in technical as- sistance, and UNEP, in problems of the human environ- ment-as well as the activities of other international agencies in this area; and, lastly, the contribution to the development of nuclear technology of international gather- ings such as the Persepolis and Salzburg type of conference, the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation, the United Nations Conference on Technical Co-operation among Developing Countries in Buenos Aires and the United Nations Conference on Science {md Technology for De- velopment in Vienna. 81. The solving of international problems concerning the peaceful use of nuclear energy is necessary in order to give an impetus to the industrialization of developing countries, to accelerate their over-all development and to strengthen their political and economic independence, thus promoting the aims of the New International Economic Order. For instance, as a developing country, ,Yugoslavia will need 12,000 megawatts of installed nuclear capacity by the year 2000 in order'to complement its other sources of energy. Therefore internationally agreed principles and rules and stability and security in this field of international relations are indispensable for the implementation of such pro- grammes, which constitutes a very difficult task for a developing country. For that reason also we are in favour of strengthening the role of the Agency and wish to promote still further our co-operation with it in all the fields of its activities concerned with the development of nuclear energy for the social and economic development of its members. 85. Having reiterated some of the ideas contained in the reply of my Government, I should like to introduce draft resolution A/33/L.6. . 82. In order to enable the Agency to carry out its functions successfully, appropriate changes should be made with a view to strengthening further the democratic decision-making process. In this sense, we support the proposals to amend article VI of the Agency's statute. 86. The sponsors of the draft resolution hope that the delegations will support the request contained in the draft that Member States should continue to send the Secretary- General their views on the possibility and usefulness of holding an international conference under the auspices of the United Nations system, at the appropriate time, with a view to the further promotion of international co-operation in the field of the peaceful use of nuclear energy, in accordance with the objectives of resolution 32/50. 83. As is knov/n, General Assembly resolution 32/50, adopted by consensus, recommended the convening of an international conference or conferences under the auspices of the United Nations system aimed at promoting inter- flational co-operation in the peaceful use of nuclear energy. On the basis of this, the Secretary-General invited Member States to communicate to him their views concerning the usefulness of such a conference or conferences. The Yugoslav Government supported this decision of the General Assembly and, in its note addressed to the Secretary-General/see A/33/332, sect. IlJ, emphasized that these complex problems should be solved on the basis of the broadest consensus by holding several conferences. There is no doubt that the Conferences held at Persepolis9 and at Salzburg and the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation studies, and so on, have greatly contributed towards reaching agreement on a number of scientific and technical matters relating to the peaceful use of nuclear energy. However, it was rightly stressed at the General Conference of IAEA that political means and the broadest political ~greement are needed for the resolution of the whole complex of this 'luestion. This opinion has also been reflected in the communications of a large number of Governments in the replies they sent to the Secretary- 87. I invite representatives to adopt draft resolution A/33/L.6 by consensus.

I should like to start by expre~sing my delegation's gratitude to the Director Gen- eral of IAEA, Mr. Sigvard Eklund, for the clarity of presentation of the Agency's annual report and, especially, for his continued effective leadership which over the last 17 years has been a vital factor in the growth of the Agency. Having had the pleasure of watching him at work at close quarters, I can attest to his dedication and devotion to the Agency. I can also attest to his willingness to listen and to take steps to correct what some of us believe to be years of non-responsiveness on the part of IAEA to the problems of the developing countries. 89. Last year the General Assembly had a more detailed discussion of the work of IAEA than in any previous year. As a result of the detailed discussion, the General Assembly adopted decisions which went beyond the routine pro- cedural resolutions of previous years. This in retrospect can 9 Conference on the Transfer of Nuclear Te~hno!ogy, held at Persepolis, Iran, from 10 to 14 April 1977. ~O. At the Salzburg Conference held last year under the auspices of the Agency, it was widely agreed that nuclear power was the one source of energy able to bridge the gap that will appear as a result of the progressive exhaustion of fossil fuel resources. This was an affirmation by perhaps the largest assembly ever convened of experts in the field of a viewpoint which the Director General of the Agency has consistently expressed. However, also in Salzburg during the Conference there was a vocal group which !}xpressed equally passionately the view that the use of nuclear energy held potential disastrous consequences and should therefore be discouraged-indeed discontinued. In fact, we are all too well aware of the activities of the groups opposed to nuclear power plants in several countries and the effect those activities have had on the expansion of such plants. However, support was given by a solid bloc of participants from aeveloping countries for the wider use of nuclear energy, which they saw as the main energy source of the future. It is the task of IAEA to disabuse the minds of people regarding the myth, as against the reality, of the danger of nuclear power plants and in this the Agency can build up a large constituency of support in developing countries. What that implies as well, of course, is that the Agency should lay greater emphasis on the promotional aspect of its mandate. 91. In that context, my delegation iias consistently advo- cated a substantial increase in the resources available to the Agency for its technical assistance programme. We note with some satisfaction the observation in the Agency's annual report for 1977 that the increase in technical assistance expenditures in 1977 was the largest in the history of the regular programme and that the trend towards i....lcreasing the backlog seemed to have been arrested. I should like to congratulate the Director General on the administrative steps which have been taken to relieve the congestion in technical assistance deliveries. That, however, is only a part of the question. The other part is the volume of the annual voluntary contribution for technical assistance. May I say that the annual voluntary contribution is, as the annual report points out, the backbone of the Agency's technical assistance programme. That being so, IAEA's Board of Governors should be forward-looking and should set their sights on reaching a target far above the $6 million approved for 1977 at least by the tinte the Agency comes to celebrate its twenty-fifth anniversary. Some of the measures which my delegation and others had suggested, which were designed to stimulate awareness of the Agency's relevance to the problems of development, are already being carried out. 92. Among those measures are the following: the identifi- cation of sound projects calling for the provision of larger 93. Obviously, as the Director General of the Agency emphasized this morning, for many years to come the great majority of the Agency's developing member States will benefit mainly from the secondary uses of nuclear tech- niques in food and agriculture, medicine and hydrology; but even those sel.'Vndary uses, if they are on a sufficiently large scale, can be vital to the development process. ' 94. In that context, Nigeria is happy to be co-operating with the Agency in the first large-scale experiment for insect control. In June 1977 I had the privilege of signing, on behalf of the Nigerian Government, an agreement with the Agency for a large-scale project for suppressing the tsetse fly by the sterile-insect technique. We appreciate the co-operation of the Agency, FAO and several States members of IAEA which are involved in this project, which we hope will provide a solution to an important problem of animal breeding. 95. The General Assembly in its resolution 32/50, adopted last year by consensus, approved certain principles for international co-operation in the use of nuc~ear..energy for peaceful purposes. That resolu~ion also envisaged the convening, at an appropriate stage, of an international conference or conferences under the auspices of the United Nations system, with the aim of promoting, such inter- national co-operation. My delegation reaffirms its view on the need to take concrete steps towards the implementation of that resolution. Some Member States have already conveyed to the Secretary-General their views on the convening of such a conference or conferences. However, there is need to have the views of more States. It is therefore necessary to have a simple procedural resolution to remind States that they should comply with paragraph 2 of resolution 32/50. That is the intention behind draft resolution A/33/L.6, introduced a short time ago by the representative of Yugoslavia. 96. As a sponsor of that draft resolution, I need hardly state again the support of my delegation for it, and I hope that, as in the case of resolution 32/50, this draft resolution will be adopted by consensus. 97. Since the promotion of the peaceful uses of nuclear energy is one of the most important functions of IAEA, the Agency must play 3.1'1 active role in any international conference or conferences convened on this matter. Indeed we believe that the Agency should seek every opportunity to fulfJI its responsibilities in this regard. 98. In his statement this morning the Director General made a reference to the intention of the Agency to convene "This second, Salzburg-type conference would no doubt contribute to the peaceful uses of nuclear energy for economic and social development, thus helping to meet the objectives of resolution 32/50." {see above, para.37.J 101. Since the representative of Saudi Arabia, in his introduction of the draft resolution, made mention of a request to him that there be an indication that the areas to be given an increase in their representation on the Board of Governors should include certain other areas not originally mentioned in his submitted text, it is pertinent here to refer to the decision of the General Conference of IAEA itself. which the Director General quoted verbatim this morning during his presentation, when he said: The Director General went on to say further-and here I am paraphrasing him-that the Agency would be very happy to take account of any decision the General Assembly might take in that regard. Bearing that factor in mind, therefore, my delegation is particularly pleased that in draft resolution A/33/L.5, which was so ably introduced this morning by the representative of Saudi Arabia, provision has been made to request the Agency to broaden the mandate of the Salzburg-type conference that is being planned so as to include consideration of the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. While· we do not see this request as precluding consideration in other conferences of the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, we believe .nevertheless that its inclusion in the agenda of a Salzburg-type conference would be very pertinent. 99. Last year the General Assembly in its resolution 32/49 touched on a subject which is quite important for the representation of developing countries in the Agency. In paragraph 7, the General Assembly invited IAEA "to give due consideration to the request of developing countries for an increase in their representation on the Board of Governors in accordance with the principle of equitable geographical distribution". My delegation has noted from the report of the Director General of the Agency that the Agency gave this question consideration both in the Board of Governors and in the General Conference. Indeed we are aware of the considerable interest the discussion of this item generated at the General Conference. However, we are disappointed that, even though a substantial majority of members of the Agency favoured an increase in the representation of Africa and the Middle East and South Asia, the opposition of a minority prevented the General Conference from taking a decision. . This being so, it is the view of my delegation that an insurmountable complication would be introduced into the consideration of this particular subject by IAEA if the General Assembly were to inject into its resolution a reference . to the inclusion of areas which the General Conference of IAEA has seen fit to exclude from its consideration. Therefore I hope that the representative of Saudi Arabia will explain the situation to those who suggested that there ought to be a broadening of the areas to be considered for an increase. 102. I should not like to conclude this statement without making reference to the regulatory aspect of the work of the Agency. We have noted the steps being taken to make Agency safeguards more effective. We believe this is an important function of the Agency and therefore we are gratified that the General Conference at its last session increased the Agency's budget for safeguards by more than 50 per cent-according to the Director General this morn- ing, from $10 million to more than $15 million. We can only hope that a similar willingness will be shown to increase the resources available to the Agency for the other aspect of its dual mandate, that is, the promotional aspect of the work of the Agency. Therefore it does not seem too far-fetched to suggest that the Agency, at least by the time it comes to celebrating its twenty-fifth anniversary, should consider an increase of not less than 50 per cent in the funds available for technical assistance and for promoting the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. 100. While not going into the details of this subject, I should like to remind those who continue to oppose an increase in the representation of the areas of Africa and the Middle East and South Asia on the Board of Governors that they are not doing anything to enhance the Agency's image. Democratization of international organizations has become a dynamic process and cannot be reversed. Besides, the areas of Africa and the Middle East and South Asia have been very constructive and moderate in their wiUingness to accept an increase of one member for each of the two areas on the Board of the Agency. It is quite clear that this small increase will in no way bring the representation of those two areas to the percentage representation of the other areas within the Agency. Therefore it is most distressing to note that even this modest increase is being blocked. My delegation therefore finds quite appropriate the inclusion of paragraph 5 in the draft resolution submitted by the representative of Saudi Arabia, whereby the General As- sembly would again invite the Agency to give further consideration to the proposals for an increase in the representation of the areas of Africa and the Middle East 103. My delegation is also gratified that more countries are placing their facilities under the Agency's safeguard system. Having taken note of this increase in the number of countries that are willing to place their facilities under the Agency's safeguards, we cannot fail to condemn the continued refusal, as mentioned in the annual report of the Agency, by South Africa to place under Agency safeguards its nuclear activities, which involve-again according to. the report of the Agency-significant quantities of special fissionable material. "The discussions at the General Conference are summed up in resolution 361, which notes that " '... the proposal for a moderate increase of one seat each in the representation of the areas of Africa and of the Middle East and South Asia on the Board was acceptable to a majority of the member States who participated in the discussions on this matter at the twenty-second regular session of the General Conference, while a smaller but significant number opposed it'." {see above, para. 34.J "Invites all Governments and organizations to take all appropriate action to promote the purposes of the present resolution". 105. Part of the measures which were envisaged in that resolution included a call, in paragraph 3 (g), "To end all transfer of nuclear equipment or fissionable material or technology to South Africa". The intent of that paragraph wa!t also to indicate that no nuclear equipment or fis- sionable material or technology should be acquired from South Africa. My delegation proposes that the Agency should in its future reports to the General Assembly include confirmation of its compliance with the resolution in the same way as it has indicated its compliance with other resolutions adopted by the General Assembly.

On behalf of the United States, I should first like to thank Mr. Eklund for his statement as well as for his leadership and dedication to the twin objectives of furthering the development of the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, including its potential for meeting the world's electrical energy requirements, and at .the same time, of making the world a safer place in which to live through the Agency's non-proliferation safeguards. 107. I should like to reiterate the United States support for the Agency's statutory goals: furthering the peaceful uses of nuclear energy while guarding against its use for military purposes. 108. We are in total agreement with the Director General's emphasis on the importance of IAEA safeguards. We have joined with others in the effort to widen the scope of Agency safeguards by encouraging the fullest possible adherence to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. We are also seeking, through our bilateral relationships, to expand the application of Agency safe- guards. The United States has strongly supported the efforts of the Age~lcy to strengthen safeguards as IAEA faces the difficult task of applying effective safeguards to increasing numbers of facilities and more complex and sensitive facilities. Efforts will continue to be necessary to improve safeguards techniques and instrumentation and to provide the Board of Governors with more detailed and more timely data to permit the assessment of safeguards performance and the need for improvements. 109. I should also like to commend IAEA for its as- sistance, both through technical contributions and adminis- trative support, to the International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation. The participation of more than 50 countries and international organjzations in this evaluation reflects a broadly shared recognition that the world community needs a thorough reassessment of where it stands today in the development of nuclear power. We are pleased that 111. Over the past thre~~ years we have expanded our support, both financial and material, .to the work of the Agency and we urge all countries able to do so to do likewise. In our view, that is an organization whose activities are essential to us all.

My delegation listened atten- tively to the very informative and, as always lucid state- ment made today by the Director General of IAEA, Mr. Eklund. We have also carefully studied the annual report of the Agency, which he so ably introduced. The contents of this report confirm beyond any doubt the growing role and responsibilities of the Agency at. a time when it is indeed imperative to intensify efforts to protect mankind from the danger of nuclear war and, at the same time, to promote the peaceful uses of nuclear energy for the benefit of all nations. 113. The importance of the Agency's role in fostering both those objectives can hardly be questioned. The first one, that of reducing the danger of a nuclear war, is well served by the Agency's activities aimed at the strengthening of the regime of non-proliferation of nuclear weapons. For there can be no doubt that the more States acquire such weapons, the greater will be the risk of a nuclear holocaust. Therefore, my Government attaches primary importance to the part of the Agency's work designed to ensure that international oo-operation in the peaceful uses of atomic energy does not become a vehicle by which to proliferate nuclear weapons. We regard the activities of the Agency in this domain as a significant part of the over-all efforts undertaken on different planes and in different forums with a view to setting up an effective barrier against the spread of military nuclear potential. 114. The critical importance and urgency of this problem was underlined by Poland's Minister for Foreign Affairs, Emil Wojtaszek, in his statement in the general debate on 28 September last. He said: "We continue to stress emphatically the need for the strengthening of the regime of non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, both by achieving the universality of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and by stricter IAEA safeguards, while constantly de- veloping the application of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes." {12th meeting, para. 120.J 121. That leads me to another significant aspect of the Agency's activities, namely, its technical assistance pro- grammes. The expression of Poland's support for these programmes is seen in its active participation in their implementation. Motivated by the desire to make a further contribution in this field, the Polish Government again decided substantially to increase its voluntary payment. 116. Poland and other socialist countries have been making persistent efforts to strengthen the regime of the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons and to facilitate the universalization of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. May I in this context reaffIrm the lasting support of my Government for two' important initiatives submitted recently by the Soviet Union: one on the strengthening of guarantees of the security of non-nuclear States [see A/33/241] and the other concerning the non-stationing of nuclear weapons on the territories of States where there are no such weapons at present [A/C1/33/L.38]. We are fIrmly convinced that the adop- tion by the General Assembly and the subsequent imple- mentation of these proposals w!mld contribute greatly to the strengthening of the non-proHieration regime. 122. Without pretending to cover an the spheres of important activity of the Agency, let me add only that in the opinion of the Polish delegation there is need for and there are possibilities of further intensification of co- operation between the Agency and the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance and the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, particularly in the utilization in the work of the Agency of the rich experience gained by the socialist countries in their collective search for solutions to many scientific, technological and economic problems, amI also in the field of the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. 117. My Government highly appreciates the results of the work already accomplished by the Agency with regard to the application of safeguards to ensure that the spread of peaceful nuclear technology will not be abused for military purposes. The fact that in 1977 the Agency carried out 706 inspections in 45 States compared with 565 inspections in 40 States during the preceding year is an indication of the constantly growing scope of the Agency's work in that respect. 123. There is one final point. The results of the con- ference that was held in Salzburg in May 1971 reaffirm our conviction that the development of nuclear power plants, including those working on fast breeder reactors, is in- dispensable if the rapidly growing energy reqUirements in all regions of the world are to be met, and thus saving at least some portion of the resources of oil, gas and coal for the industries in which they are irreplaceable. 118. There is, however, an urgent need to strengthen further and enhance the efficacy of the Agency safeguards system as well as to eliminate all the loop-holes that .may exist in that regard. In this connexion I cannot but ex.press my Government's deep concern over the continuing delay in the practical application of the Agency's safeguards in the non-nuclear-weapon States of the European Atomic Energy Community. We earnestly appeal to the States concerned for the immediate removal of their obstacles to the full implementation of the Agency's safeguards system. 124. The magnitude of the tasks before us and the recognition of the danger inherent in the use of nuclear energy for other than peaceful purposes make it incumbent upon all of us to fonow a responsible and consistent policy that will combine the efforts to promote the development of international co-operation in the peaceful application of atomic energy with energetic and effective measures to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons. 119. In recent years much attention has been given also to the question of the safekeeping of nuclear materials in the process of their accumulation, use .and transportation. In our opinion it is essential to work out a convention on the physical protection of nuclear materials as qUickly as possible, as envisaged in General Assembly resolution 32/49. 125. We strongly believe that IAEA, which has entered the third decade of its activities, has an extremely significant role to play in ensuring the practical attainment of both those objectives. We are sure that under the excellent leadership of Mr. Sigvard Eklund-whose dedicated work,-as well as that of his colleagues in the Agency, we value highly-the Agency will successfully discharge the tasks entrusted to it by the international community. For our part, we shall continue to give our full support and co-operation io the Agency. 120. It is the considered view of my delegation that the question of strengthening the regime of the non- proliferation of nuclear weapons and that of promoting the peaceful application of nuclear energy are closely inter- The meeting rose at 1.10 p.m.